


Dragon ball: the tale of bulma and the monkey boy

by kinnikuniverse



Category: Dragon Ball
Genre: Action/Adventure, Comedy, F/M, Fix-It of Sorts, Romance, a few divergences, backstories for some chars who had none, fuck power levels, power scaling doesnt mean weaker chars are useless, side chars are useful
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-14
Updated: 2019-09-16
Packaged: 2019-10-10 06:04:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 31
Words: 120,392
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17420465
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kinnikuniverse/pseuds/kinnikuniverse
Summary: A Monkey boy's life changes when he meets a girl looking for seven wish-granting dragon balls. this marks the beginning of a grand, mystical adventure beyond imagination! a version of the dragon ball manga and anime, with elements from MasakoX's what-ifs and ideas of our own!





	1. A fateful meeting

**Author's Note:**

> The Following is not for profit. it is strictly a fan work meant for personal amusement. Dragon ball, dragon ball z and dragon ball super is property of Akira toriyama, toyotaro, shueisha, Toei animation and shonen jump. please support the official release.
> 
> Some ideas from this fanfic are taken from Lawrence Simpson, AKA: Masakox of teamfourstar fame. check out his what-ifs, they're pretty interesting!

Dragon ball

The tale of bulma and the monkey boy

Chapter 1: A fateful meeting

 

 

The sun shines bright over the tallest peak of mount paozu, its ray reflecting on the mountain, emphasizing its glorious beauty.

 

Further down the peak was a thick forest, the leafs almost completely covering the surrounding area. The forest was vibrant with life, many animals of various species called it home, from calm and innocent herbivores to carnivorous predators, along with mischievous monkeys jumping around the trees.

 

Speaking of monkeys, a small family of japanese macaques were watching with confusion and fascination as a huge log was rolling down the mountain road. Even more curious was a little boy wearing a royal blue karate gi with a white belt around his waist and red wristbands.

The boy was short, even for a kid, had a slightly chubby physique, and had wild, spiky hair as black as his joyful, innocent-looking eyes. He was making the log roll with his foot in a steady rhythm, as if it was the easiest thing in the world.

 

``Hey there!`` he shouted to the monkey family as he waved his hand at them, the monkey family only looking at him with more curiosity.

The boy, seemingly the only human in these woods, stopped the big log from rolling once he arrived in front of a small, Chinese-style home. He then jumped off of it, faced it and spread his legs open to put himself in the

horse position, a traditional martial arts stance. His joyful look in his eyes gave place to a look of intense focus and determination…

 

``HYAAAAH!!``

With a mighty shout, he threw the log in the air effortlessly, and jumped towards it…

 

``TEI!!!``

With one swift kick, he cut the log into multiple pieces, all of them crashing on the ground, while the boy landed on his feet.

Happy at the work he’s done, he picks up the pile of wood like it was nothing, and entered the house.

The inside of the house had a modest decoration, with a basic set-up composed of a table, a fireplace and an old-looking bed.

 

However, the most interesting thing in the house was a desk that contained a shiny crystal ball on a cushion. Inside the crystal ball were 4 stars, the meaning of which was unknown.

After deposing the pieces of wood into the inactive fireplace, the boy went to the crystal ball to pray.

`` hey grampa`` said the boy, addressing the ball. `` im gonna go get some food, I’ll be right back!``

With that said, the boy was on his way to go get some food…

 

 

Further from here lied the mountain road, its sinuous terrain making anybody’s time driving there a bit of an hassle. Daring adventurers and zoologists, however, didn’t care for it, as seeing a forest so full of wildlife and undiscovered (and unconfirmed) treasures was worth it for them.

One such adventurer was coming by, driving a sky blue Renault 5 turbo. A short while later, the Renault 5 turbo stopped on the side of the road. The driver seat door opened, and a shapely leg came out of it, soon followed by the rest of the driver’s body.

The driver was an adolescent girl with long, purple hair all attached in one spiraly ponytail attached by a big red bow on her head. Her big, bright eyes were the same color as her hair, and she was wearing a pink shirt with a matching miniskirt. in front of her shirt was her name written on it:

 

``BULMA``

 

After stretching her limbs and taking a breath of hair, She grabbed a round thing from her blue bag.

The thing in question was a radar of some sort, emitting an orange wave on the screen, making a bright orange dot appear in the northwest of the screen.

``It’s not far from here…`` the girl  realised. ``… a little more to the west, and I’m right around the corner!`` She then re-entered her car and headed west.

 

We then see our strong kung-fu boy looking over a pond that longed a nearby waterfall. The boy knew that  there was a lot of big fish in that pond, and the bigger the fish was, the more yummy it tasted! He then stripped himself naked in order to properly use his  most unusual attribute.

That’s right, the boy had a long monkey tail over his buttocks!

He uses it as some sort of fishing rod, attempting to lure any fish around the surface.

Underwater, a big, carnivorous piranha, was looking for its next meal, when he saw the tail. Agitated by it, he blasted mouth-open towards it, thinking he found some kind of massive worm.

And the fish blasted out of the water into the air, where the monkey boy delivered a big jumping kick that knocked out the piranha instantly! He then put his gi back on and carried his catch along the mountain road. It was a big one, and he was really happy!

 

But then, he heard a sound.

 

A sound he never heard before…

 

As he turned around to investigate, a roaring, menacing ( and, oddly enough, square-shaped) beast came speeding through!

The boy could do nothing about it, he stood there in sheer terror as he was about to get tackled by the beast…

 

…Until the beast screeched and turned around, avoiding him by inches.

After the beast stopped spinning around, the boy took a fighting stance when, surprisingly, a smaller creature came out of the beast.

`` HEY, WATCH WHERE YOU’RE GOING! IT’S DANGEROUS, WALKING DOWN THE ROAD LIKE THAT!!`` the girl, the same girl from earlier, screamed at the little boy in karate gear looking at her confusingly.

``Y-You monster!!`` yelled the monkey boy at the ``beast`` in front  of him.``You’re trying to steal my catch, aren’t ya?``

 

With that said, he then went under the car and lifted it with all of his strength, scaring the girl inside the Renault 5 turbo. He then threw the car with equal strength, and the car was violently slammed sideways, the girl screaming in terror and surprise, sparking intrigue in the boy’s mind.

Not distracted  by the scream, the monkey boy took a staff from the back of his gi and went to a fighting stance. That’s where he saw bulma coming out on the window, all dirty.

 

```Huh? A fairy came out of the beast!`` the boy innocently said, as if he  didn’t know what  a girl and a car was.

``t-that boy is nuts! He’ gonna kill me!`` bulma said, taking out a 9mm pistol. Despite not wanting to shoot the boy, she felt she had no choice, and reluctantly pulled the trigger.

 

BANG!!

 

The monkey boy received a thunderous headshot, knocking him out cold.

 

Silence took over the mountain road, as bulma stood in her totaled car completely frightened of what she just did. ``N-N-No way…I-I-I actually K-Killed someone! And a kid, at that!`` she said, as she was about to cry…until, out of nowhere, the boy stood up, as if nothing happened!

``OW!! THAT HURTS!`` he yelled, holding his forehead as if he was only hit by a rock, completely rendering the ``fairy`` speechless, her eyes widening like a crack on the ground during an earthquake at what she just saw.

 

```H-H-HOW DID YOU NOT DIE?!?``

 

``your magic won’t work on me, fairy! My body is as strong as steel!`` boasted the boy, ready to attack, as he lifted his staff. ``Prepare to meet thy doom`, monster!!``

``W-WAIT!!`` yelled bulma, as the boy was about to strike. ``I’m no monster, I’m a human!!``

 

Upon hearing these words, the boy stopped dead on his tracks.

 

`` huh? A human? Really?`` he asked.

``Y-yes,  of course!`` bulma answered, jumping out on the window. ``Just like you! look!!``

The boy then took a cautious stance, and carefully examined the ``human`` in front of him. The girl looked at him go, analysing every inch of her. Not in a perverted way, but more like an examination, as if he  was seeing a creature for the first time.

``hum, are you d-``  
  
``NOT a word! And don’t move!`` the boy shouted, as he continued his examination.

``hmm, you’re human, but you’re different than me… your body is curved in a strange way all over the place, and your muscles look really  weak and underdeveloped…`` the boy said, analysing her body. `` and your face is round and soft-looking…``

``well, duh!`` answered bulma, thinking that the boy was toying with her. `` of course, silly, you’re a little boy, and I’m a beautiful girl!``

``A girl?`` the boy asked, his eyes becoming as wide as the sun. `` you’re really  a girl?``

`` uh, yeah!`` bulma was becoming more and more annoyed at the boy’s stupid games `` what, never seen one before?`` she asked jokingly.

``It’s the first time I’ve ever seen one.`` he said with complete honesty. The boy looked at the girl once again. He was fascinated by the first girl he has ever seen. His grandpa told him about them, how they were pretty, even more so than the sun. well, he thought that the girl was very pretty indeed, with bright, purple eyes that seemed like mini jewels.

``Wait, you aren’t kidding?`` she asked, only to be stunned when the boy bowed his head forward. `` what in the world is this kid? Is he raised in the woods or something? Why is he so strong? And how the hell did he survived a headshot??`` she thought.

 

`` my grandpa always told me that, if I ever meet  a girl, that I should be nice to them.`` the boy said.

`` whew! At least, your grandpa taught you that!`` bulma said with a sigh of relief.

```so girls don’t have tails, huh?`` the boy said as he looked at bulma’s backside.

``H-HEY!! What are you looking at??``bulma shouted

`` just seeing if girls had tails, that’s all.`` he answered.

`` a t-tail? What ar-`` she was about to ask what he was talking about when she saw that the boy had a monkey tail! Surely it must be a fake! After all, no human male had tails, as far as she was concerned!

`` by the way, what kind of monster is that?`` the monkey boy asked, pointing at the totaled car.

`` that’s no monster, that’s a car!`` bulma answered, angry `` and now, you’ve cost thousands of zennies and my parents are gonna be mad at me!``

``a car?`` the boy asked, looking as if a light just turned on in his head. `` my grandpa also told me about these! It’s big, but pretty weak… does that mean you’re from the city?``

``I’m from west city, yes.`` bulma answered.

``ah, sorry for destroying your car!`` he said, as he bowed down apologetically.`` it seems you can’t go back to the city anymore.``

``it’s alright, I have other means of going back home, I’m just..`` bulma sighed in fatigue.`` it’s been a crazy day.``

``hey, come to my house! I will cook this fish for you and me!`` the monkey boy suggested, as he picked up his catch.

``…ok, I’ll go with you, I guess. Not like I had a choice.`` bulma sighed. She was gonna live in a cabin in the woods with some weird kid who was  somehow freakishly strong like 3 gorillas! However, seeing as he’s such an innocent kid, she knew he wouldn’t do anything weird. In fact, she could use the boy’s strength as protection…

`` say, how did you get so strong?`` bulma asked the boy.

‘’grandpa trained me in the martial arts for as far as I can remember.’’ He answered, proudly carrying the big fish he caught. ‘’judging by how frail-looking your body is, you don’t train much, do you?’’

‘’I do aerobics since the start of the year, so my body is quite healthy, thank you very much!’’ bulma replied. ‘’ and learning kung fu and being strong enough to lift a freaking car is definitely not part of my plans!’’

‘’it’s a shame, cause martial arts is fun!’’ the boy stated.

‘’ to you, maybe, but I definitely don’t want to have my pretty face get smashed to pieces!’’ she answered, carefully caressing her face.

‘’ you’re weird…’’ the monkey boy thought out loud.

‘’as if a pint-sized superman with a monkey tail was completely normal!’’ the purple-haired girl said in her head.

‘’by the way, we didn’t tell each other’s names!’’ the wild-haired boy realised. ‘’my name’s Goku, what’s yours?’’he asked bulma.

That’s where her face became slightly red of embarassement, much to goku’s confusion.

‘’ what’s wrong?’’ he asked. ‘’ I promise I won’t laugh if it’s a funny name.’’ he reassured her.

‘’…Bulma.’’ She quietly  responded.

‘’BWAHAHAHAHA!!! THAT’S SUCH A STUPID NAME!!’’ goku bursted out laughing.

‘’ I KNOW! IT’S MY PARENT’S IDEA! ‘’ she shouted, her face completely red in embarrassment. ‘’AND YOU PROMISED NOT TO LAUGH!’’

‘’Haha, sorry, couldn’t retain myself… wait, you really have parents?’’  
‘’ well, yeah, just like you.’’ She responded.

‘’ wow, you’re lucky.’’ Goku said, with a solemn look on his face. ‘’ I wish I had parents. I only have my grandpa.’’

 

When goku said that, bulma started to regret assuming he had parents. he must have lost his parents at a really young age if only his grandpa was left.

‘’I… I’m sorry, goku.’’ She mournfully said. ‘’ I didn’t know you didn’t have parents…’’

‘’ nah, it’s alright!’’ goku said, smiling as if nothing happened, surprising bulma. ‘’ hey, we’re almost there! Come on, let’s go!’’ he shouted as he ran with his fish.

‘’ Hey, wait for me!’’ bulma ordered. ‘’ and how can you run that fast with such a big fish in your arms?’’

They ran uo the hill and eventually reached the top, where goku’s little house was. Bulma thanked god that she did aerobics, as she managed to catch up to goku at the top of the hill. She saw the little Chinese-style house that goku and his grandpa lived in.

‘’ that’s your house?’’

‘’yeah!’’ goku answered enthusiastically. ‘’ it’s got everything!’’

And as  bulma enetered the house, by everything, he meant a basic setup of fireplace, kitchen, old-looking oven, a toilet and a bed for two persons. It was an ordinary shack, with only the essential tools to fulfill basic human needs. It’s definitely not the capsule corp. lab, but if that’s what goku and his gandfather preferred…

However, nothing prepared her from what she saw on a desk near the rear window.

Bulma couldn’t believe it, as she saw an orange crystal ball shining bright on a cushion.

‘’NO WAY!!’’ she shouted, gently pushing goku aside as she jumped at the crystal ball. ‘’My dragon radar worked! I found the dragon ball!!’’ she exclaimed as she picked up the ball.

‘’HEY, GIMME BACK MY GRANDPA!’’ goku shouted at bulma, as he forcefully pulled the dragon ball from her hands.

‘’Wait, you think the dragon ball is your grandpa?’’ she asked.

 

‘’no, of course not!’’ goku answered, protecting the ball. ‘’ this ball is the only memory I have left of my grandpa after he died! It belongs to me!’’

‘’ he…died?’’ bulma was left speechless. This monkey boy has been living in this shack, in the middle of the mountains, all alone? For how long? she thought that his grandpa must’ve had the dragon ball in his possession before he died. And seeing that he was the only parent goku seemingly knew, it must mean a lot to him. She felt guilty of trying to steal an object that he associated with the memory of his only loved one.

 

‘’look, goku…’’ bulma began speaking. ‘’ I know this dragon ball must mean a lot to you, but I really need it!’’

‘’nuh uh!’’ goku answered childishly. ‘’ and why do you keep calling a ‘’dragon ball’’ it belongs to no dragon, it belongs to me and my grandpa!’’

‘’ you mean he didn’t tell you the legend before going to bed?’’ bulma asked.

‘’ he told me a lot of bedtime stories, true,  but not this ‘’legend’’ you speak of! What does this have to do with my grandpa’s ball?’’ goku asked.

That’s where bulma gave goku a sly smile, and put her hand in her handbag as goku watched curiously. His eyes then went wide as couldn’t believe what he was seeing!

Bulma had in her hands two other balls that were the same as his grandpa’s albeit the ones in bulma’s hands had 2 and 5 stars, respectively.

‘’WHA?? H-HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE?? You have two grandpas??’’ goku was flabbergasted.

‘’ no, silly!’’ bulma responded. ‘’these are dragon balls! Just like the one you have!’’

 

‘’ so they’re really called dragon balls?’’ goku asked  
‘’Yup!’’ bulma said affirmatively. ‘’ I found one of them in the cellar back home. I did some research, and I found the 5-star one in the northern valley and yours, the 4-star, with my dragon radar.’’

‘’dragon radar?’’ goku asked.

‘’ it’s a device of my own invention.’’ She said, grabbing a round, compass-like radar from her bag. ‘’ with a sonar blip, it allows me to find where the dragon balls are. That’s how I found yours.’’

‘’whoa! You created that?’’

‘’ Of course!’’ bulma boasted, confidently posing her fists on her hips. ‘’after all, I’m bulma briefs, daughter of the scientific genius Dr. Briefs, and a brilliant scientist myself!’’

 

‘’ BWAHAHA, YOUR LAST NAME IS BRIEFS!’’

 

‘’…grr, stupid parents and their sense of humour!’’ bulma thought begrudgingly. ‘’ anyways, I researched on them, and what I found motivated me to go collect them all.’’

‘’ collect them? How many are there?’’ goku asked.

‘’ there are seven in total.’’ Bulma explained. ‘’ legend says that, if you gather them all and place them in a circle, a Huge dragon named shenron will come out flying into the sky! And then, with a mighty roar than can create hurricanes, shenron will grant you any wish you desire!’’

‘’whoah!’’ goku exclaimed, the monkey boy’s eyes having a look of child-like wonder.

‘’I know, right!’’ the purple-haired scientist enthusiastically said. ‘’ but, of course, it’s only a legend. But, as a woman of science, it’s my duty to debunk legends and superstitions. And knowing that the dragon balls truly exists, maybe the legend isn’t too far-fetched, after all!’’

 

‘’do you already know what you wanna wish to the dragon?’’ goku asked.

‘’ oh, of course!’’ bulma said in a girly tone. ‘’ I mean, I first thought of a lifetime supplies of strawberries, but I now have a better idea: a perfect boyfriend! All the boys at school aren’t to my liking, so I’ll just wish for the dragon to summon the handsome knight in shining armor from my dreams!”

“I prefer the strawberries.’’ Goku says. ‘’but then again, there are lots of strawberries in the forest, so it’s pretty usele-‘’  
  
‘’ANYWAYS, that’s why I need your 4-star dragon ball!’’ bulma interrupted.

‘’NO!’’ goku shouted, protecting his dragon ball.

“ Aw, come on! After all I told you, you don’t wanna see the dragon? He can wish your grandpa back to life!’’

Goku only answered by sticking his tongue out.

“but…’’ bulma was about to say, when suddenly, she thought of an idea. It may not be the brightest of ideas, but nothing could convince the monkey boy of giving the ball, so… “oh, you’re such a nice boy!’’ bulma said, his tone changing suddenly to a muchfriendlier tone, catching goku off guard. “ I’ll show you something really nice!’’ she said in a playful, teasing manner.

Goku had no idea what she was talking about, and he only grew more curious as bulma got up from the dining table in a graceful manner. She then giggled teasingly as she slowly strutted in circles, seductively swaying her large hips at every step she took.

 

As she wanted, goku looked at her, curiously observing her swaying hips. bulma guessed that, by his size and voice, that goku must be around 10 to 12-years-old, A.K.A: the general age where boys starts the biological growth process called puberty.

Seeing that she got goku’s complete attention, she went for the kill.

“ here ya go, sweetie!” she playfully said as she lifted her skirt, revealing her thighs, as well as her butt, perfectly fitting a pair of white panties.

Goku looked at the exposed lower body parts of bulma. Her skin looked smooth, and her thighs were toned and muscular, probably from that “aerobics” training that she was talking about. He saw that the silhouette from her thighs to her hips formed a round curve, different from the square shape of his and grandpa gohan’s silhouette. what peeked his curiosity, though, was her butt. It was voluminous and round, as if it was sculpted like a peach, unlike his and his grandpa’s flat fannies.

“like what you see?” bulma teasingly asked, thinking that goku was mesmerised. “you can touch it, if you want.”

“EWW! why would I touch your butt?” goku asked, disgusted. “it’s so dirty!”

“YOUR FACE IS DIRTY!!” Bulma replied, frustrated that her attempts didn’t work, and now, she’s embarrassed, feeling like a complete dumbass because of the fact that she tried to seduce a kid.

“I dunno what you were trying, but you’re not taking my grandpa!” goku insisted.

“okay, I have another plan. Bulma explained. “ you can keep your grandpa’s dragon ball, but you come find the others with me. How’s that?”  
“huh? You mean, leave the house? Goku wondered.

“Of course!” bulma exclaimed. “ didn’t you ever dream of voyaging?”

“I never really left the house.” Goku said,  looking at his house. “ is the world outside the mountains an interesting place?

“ oh, yes!” bulma exclaimed “ and It’s a lot bigger than even in your wildest dreams!”

“ is there a lot of strong fighters out there?” goku asked bulma.

“Sure, of course there are!” bulma responded assuringly, even if she didn’t understand why he asked that question. “ you will find lots of them, and with your strength and your kung fu, you will protect m- I mean, take them on easily!”

“…would my  grandpa approve of this?” goku asked, looking at his ball.

“ sure, he would!” bulma affirmed “he would be very happy to see his grandson, that he raised, go explore the world on his own!”

“hmm…” goku took a moment to think about this proposal. “if it means I can still  keep my grandpa’s ball with me…then, yeah, I’ll go with you!”

“awesome!” bulma exclaimed, relieved that the monkey boy accepted. Though she wondered how would he react when he finds out that, once the wish was granted, the dragon balls scatter off in different directions…

 

Oh well, she got what she wanted, who cares?

After eating the big fish that goku caught, the duo  were on their way to the front yard.

“so let me  get this straight.” Goku said. “with this thing, we’re gonna find the dragon balls?” he pointed towards the dragon radar.

“yup!” bulma answered. “and the next one is…” a bright orange dot appeared on the western side of the map shown on the radar. “…1,200 KM to the west!”

“what’s a kilometer?” goku asked.

“ugh, I really have to teach you everything, do i?” said bulma, becoming annoyed at the monkey boy’s cluelessness.

“well, you’re way more knowledgeable about stuff, so yeah.” Goku answered.

“that was a rhetorical question.” Bulma sighed. “but of course, you don’t know what rhetoric means, either.” She then took out a square cap with a big C in the middle with the words “capsule corp.” written underneath. She opened the cap, which was filled with capsules. She took capsule no.9, clicked on the button at the top of the capsule, told goku to stand back and pitched the capsule in front of her.

 

“POOF!!”

 

In a puff of smoke, a motorbike appeared. Bulma embarked on the bike, but then, she saw goku completely freak out. “what’s wrong, goku?” she asked.

“F-F-FAIRY MAGIC!!” he shouted in fear. “you really are a fairy!”  
“ it’s not magic, it’s a hoi-poi capsule!” groaned bulma. “it’s really popular among city folks, and I have a hand in creating them!”

“woah, you’re awesome!” goku exclaimed. ”how come you know how to create all that stuff?”

“I’ll gladly tell you tales of my scientific exploits later!” bulma told him. “now hold on tight!”

With that said, she cranked it up and off they go towards the sun, as their mystical adventure begins…

 

…that is, until bulma stopped near some bushes.

“Woah, it’s amazingly fast, even faster than when I run!” goku said.

“It’s meant to go faster than a human walking or running.” Bulma explained. “now, excuse me, ‘ll be right back.” She said, as she climbed down from the bike.

“Huh? Where are you going?” goku asked innocently.

“Man, you really are stupid, aren’t you!” bulma angrily shouted. “when a lady says that, it means she’s going to pee!”

“Ah ok!”

“Now stay on the bike!” she ordered to the monkey boy, as she ran into the bushes.

“uh, why is she running to the bushes to pee?” goku wondered in his head. “she could just have done it right there. What a weirdo!.”

Then, suddenly, he heard her scream. Goku immediately went to the spot where he heard the scream.

When he arrived, he saw bulma begging for help as she was in the grip of a pterodactyl! The beast roared at goku and it took flight, bulma screaming for help.

“Hold on, bulma, I’ll save you!” the boy shouted, as he headed towards the bike. After getting on it, he managed to figure out how to move it. He twisted the handle and blasted off towards the pterodactyl’s direction.

Once he was close enough, he headed towards a cliff. He accelerated to max speed, and the bike jumped off the cliff and flew into the sky.

From there, goku jumped off the bike, flying towards the flying creature, who was shocked to see the runt actually catching up to him! The monkey boy then took out his staff and was ready to strike.

 

“NYOiBO, EXTEND!!” he screamed, as the staff magically extended towards the direction of the pterodactyl, striking him on the head with a vertical strike that broke the beast’s skull in half, immediately dying on impact and releasing bulma, who was plunging to the ground.

 

Goku landed first and proceeded to throw nyoibo towards the falling bulma, the staff grabbed her shirt by the collar, planting itself on a nearby tree, a visibly shaken bulma still processing what just happened in her head.

 

“yo!” goku greeted her, waving at her, as if nothing happened. “you alright, bulma?”

“OH MY GOD, I PEED IN MY PANTS!!” bulma shouted, embarrassed at the yellow liquid coming through her panties.

“yeah, so what?, it’s not as bad as almost getting eaten by a pterodactyl!” goku said.

“OH, YOU STUPID COUNTRY BUMPKIN!!” bulma angrily shouted as goku simply laughed it off. Bulma was processing what just happened, before sighing and saying:

 

“oh kami, what have I gotten myself into?”

 

END OF CHAPTER 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And thus, our mystical adventure begins!
> 
> thank you for reading this first chapter of dragon ball! i hope you're enjoying it as much as we enjoyed writing it!
> 
> so yeah, there is already some minor divergences from the start, mainly minor things.
> 
> also, i hope goku's discovery of girls didn't sound too pervy lol. i wanted to portray this as simply a boy being curious about something he's seeing for the first time.
> 
> anyways, thank you for reading!


	2. Slow as a turtle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Goku discovers a modern house, how to take a bath and the major difference between a boy and a girl. after being shot out of bulma's capsule house, goku stumbles upon a turtle belonging to someone who knows his grandpa.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Following is not for profit. it is strictly a fan work meant for personal amusement. Dragon ball, dragon ball z and dragon ball super is property of Akira toriyama, toyotaro, shueisha, Toei animation and shonen jump. please support the official release.
> 
> Some ideas from this fanfic are taken from Lawrence Simpson, AKA: Masakox of teamfourstar fame. check out his what-ifs, they're pretty interesting!

DRAGON BALL

The tale of Bulma and the monkey boy

 

CHAPTER 2 : Slow as a turtle

Dawn fell down in the forest, as son goku and bulma continued their search for the seven dragon balls on board a new motorbike that bulma popped out of a capsule. Speaking of bulma, due to her peeing her panties, she changed outfits. She was now wearing a white t-shirt under a deep red leather jacket and beige, form-fitting pants, while her feet were now covered in boots.

 

“ I’m starving.” Goku said, covering his gargling stomach.

 

“ all right, we’re gonna stop here for the  night.” The purple-haired girl said, stopping the bike in the middle of nowhere. “ we had a good day of traveling, today.”  


“ Yay! Let’s sleep in these bushes!” goku suggested.

  
“Oh, hell no! do you really think a girl like me is gonna sleep outside?” bulma asked.

 

“we don’t have any choice.” The monkey boy responded. “ there’s no houses around here.”

 

With that said, bulma grabbed her capsule casing, opened it and looked for a specific number.

 

“ wait, what?” goku, surprised at bulma’s move, couldn’t believe what was about to happen. “don’t tell me there’s houses in those tiny things? it’s impossible!”

 

“watch and learn, kid!” bulma proudly answered back. “you’ll learn that, with science, nothing is impossible!”

 

She then pushed thebutton and threw the capsule into the air and, as the capsule poofed, a big, white house appeared in the middle of the grass field. Bulma then looked at goku, who was completely flabbergasted at what he just saw.

 

“what?” bulma asked. “come on, let’s go in!”

 

“ you sure you’re not a witch?” goku asked.

 

“you sure you don’t wanna sleep outside?” bulma rhetorically asked.

 

Goku finally decided to enter the house. He did find the temperature cold outside.

 

When goku entered the house, bulma turned on the switch, revealing the huge kitchen and living room. It was full equipped, with an oven, a dishwasher, a microwave oven, a TV and two wardrobes.

 

“whoah!” goku was amazed at everything he was seeing. “Amazing! It’s sunny inside the house!”

 

“you don’t know electricity?” bulma asked, before realising that  goku lived in a cabin in the woods his entire life. Of course, he wouldn’t know electricity.

She then turned on the TV. It was showing a music video, with a red-haired man singing. Goku looked at the TV with fascination.

 

“ there is people moving in the window!” goku exclaimed, prompting a giggle from bulma. She found goku to be an interesting specimen. There it was, a boy who was literally raised in the woods, far away from human civilisation, discovering it for the first time. She should write down her voyage with this monkey boy in her journal. It would make both an original scientific study, and her sister, accomplished writer tights briefs, could turn it into a popular children’s story.

 

Bulma got snapped out of her thoughts as she smelled a foul odor coming out of goku’s body.

 

“Yuck!” bulma exclaimed, pinching her nose. “do you know how bad you smell? go take a bath before dinner!"

 

“ what’s a bath?” goku asked.

 

“YOU NEVER TOOK A BATH BEFORE?” bulma shouted in a surprised tone. To her, it was unacceptable. She grabbed his hand and immediately took him to the bath room.

 

“Take off your clothes and get in the bath, I’m gonna wash you.” Bulma ordered.

 

Goku did as she told, discarding his gi and jumping in the bath. Bulma took the shower head and washed goku’s entire body with soap and his hair with shampoo. Goku looked at the bubbles, thinking they looked funny.

 

“Haha! Look, bulma! Bubbles everywhere!”

 

“keep calm, and let me wash you!” bulma said. “you should consider yourself lucky that a beautiful woman like me wants to do this. Men would die to be In your spot!”

 

“why would they die to take a bath?”  


“…nevermind.” Bulma was exasperated.

 

Then, she saw something peculiar: goku’s tail was still attached, even without his clothes!

 

“wait, you stick that tail to your body?” the purple-haired girl asked.

 

“what are you talking about?” goku wondered, not understanding what she meant?

 

 

“Take it off!” bulmas said, as she pulled on his monkey tail. Goku screeched in pain as bulma tried to pull with all of her strength, only for the tail to stay there.

 

“Wait, WHAT?? YOU MEAN, IT’S A REAL MONKEY TAIL??” bulma was out of her mind.

 

“Stop pulling my tail! It hurts!” goku exclaimed, as he moved his tail  to grab the shower head out of bulma’s hands. “and why does it surprises you that I have a tail? Well, it’s true that you don’t have one. Must be male only…but my grandpa’s a male and he didn’t have one.”

“ so you’re aware that not everyone has monkey tails like you.” Bulma said.

 

“yeah, but my grandpa wasn’t normal.”

 

“YOU’RE NOT NORMAL!!” Bulma angrily responded to goku’s illogical conclusison.

 

“I don’t care!” goku responded.

 

“oof, you got a character, all right!” bulma responded.

 

After a while, bulma finally got done washing goku. She then took a bath herself. The day has been pretty rough. She met goku, she almost got eaten by a pterotactyle, and the long road trip made her tired as hell. Finally, she has time to relax, and place herself sideways, almost sleeping in the  bubble bath… but when she opened her eyes, she saw goku standing there, looking at her. Surprised, she immediately hid her breasts in the water.

 

“WHAT ARE YOU DOING, DUMBASS?!?”

“am I bothering you?” goku innocently asked.

 

“OF COURSE YOU ARE! I’m TAKING A BATH!!” Bulma shouted. “A well-educated boy would never do such a thing!”

 

“what is so bad about seeing someone naked?” goku asked innocently.

 

“oh my fucking god…” bulma whispered to herself. “…how old are you, exactly?”

 

“me?” goku began counting on his fingers. “14.”

 

Bulma immediately threw everything in vincinity at goku, who was running away. “YOU’RE ONLY 2 YEARS YOUNGER THAN ME! GET OUTTA HERE, YOU PERVERT!!”

 

Later, both of them were at the bedroom.  Inside were drawers, a wardrobe, a window and a queen-sized bed. Bulma was in a pink night dress combing her hair.

 

“I’m warning you!” bulma said. “If you ever do something like this again, I’ll kick you out of the  house and I’ll call the police!”

 

Goku only responded by yawning. “I’m sorry. Are we gonna sleep on this bed?”

 

“In your dreams, kiddo!” bulma responded. “you’re gonna sleep on the floor! And if it wasn’t for me teaching you how to brush your teeth, I would’ve woke up smelling that bad breath of yours!”

 

“you can be mean, at times!” goku said.

 

“i’m not mean, it’s just…” bulma began saying before sighing, crashing into her bed in fatigue. “…I thought the search for the dragon balls would be safe and sound, yknow? But now, here I am!! I’m already burned out, I almost got eaten alive and I have to raise a real life tarzan with a monkey tail like he was my child!”

“ my mom would’ve been way less mean than you, that’s for sure!” goku replied, laying on the blanket that bulma set up on the floor. When bulma heard him say that, it reminded her of the fact that goku never knew his parents.

 

“ it must have been hard for you, not knowing your parents, living alone in the woods with your grandpa.”bulma said.

 

“nah not as hard as you think.” Goku replied, smiling. “it’s true that I never met my parents. Maybe they abandoned me or something like that, when i was a baby. But living with grandpa was great! We hunted, went fishing together, we did walks throughout the mountain, looking at the animals, praying in ancient ruins and temples and he taught me martial arts! He always cared for me, and would always read me bedtime stories before sleeping.”

 

“wow.” Bulma said, a warm smile covering her face. “your grandpa seemed like a genuinely good person. If he was still alive, I would’ve loved to meet him.”

 

“he would be glad to meet you, too, bulma!” goku said, looking at her. “he would’ve been happy that I made a friend!”

 

“ we’re not friends!” bulma corrected. “we’re just partners.”

 

“what? You don’t wanna be friends with me? Goku responded with slight sadness in his tone.

 

Bulma felt bad about saying such a rude thing to goku. As far as she understood, she was only gonna use him as a bodyguard in her search for the dragon balls, then eave him there, thinking he would return to his house in the mountains. However, after going through what goku told him about his life before meeting her, she felt sympathy for the boy. While it’s true that, due to him living in the woods his entire life, that he lacks a lot in the etiquette department, he was only a child when his grandpa died, and he was forced to take care of himself at a really young age. The only person he ever had was his grandpa, and whatever happened to him, he was gone. Maybe, just maybe, a friend is what he needs. Not just a friend, but a person who would listen to him, care for him, do anything just to not feel alone anymore.

 

“…I’m sorry, goku.” Bulma apologised, putting a hand on goku’s shoulder. “ I shouldn’t say that. Yes, we can be friends. I’d be glad for you to be my fr-“ bulma was about to say, when he heard goku snoring like a pick-up truck, already asleep.

 

“Gee, thanks for listening to me!” bulma sarcastically said, as she jumped back on her bed and fell asleep.

 

The sun was beginning to rise as the early morning came. Goku woke up from his slumber. He had trouble sleeping that night. Must be because of all the brand new thing he saw and was processing in his young mind. He also saw that bulma was still sleeping.

 

“not fair! Why can’t I sleep on the bed with her? It looks a lot more comfortable than that blanket!” he thought, pouting with jealousy.

 

He got up and climbed up the bed. He saw that bulma was in deep sleep, her serene face brightened by the rays of the sun. the lower part of her night dress was lifted, exposing her panties and belly.

 

“hey, I know what to do!” goku thought. “I’ll do what I always did with grandpa, and sleep on her lap!” he immediately proceeded to do so, laying his head on the purple-haired girl’s lap. He tried to close his eyes, but something felt off…usually, when goku slept on his grandpa’s lap, he felt soft bump tha he used as a pillow. However, he felt no bumps on bulma’s lap.

Wondering why, he turned around, facing her pelvis, and lightly tapped it. Indeed, there was no bumps! Intrigued by it, goku then grabbed bulma’s panties and took them off, checking if she had any pee-pees…only to scream terror as he saw something no kid his age should have seen…

 

“”WAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!”

 

He blasted away to the bedroom door. His screams woke bulma up in a hurry.

 

“W-W-WHAT WHAT? WHAT’S GOING ON?” she asked, jumping out of her bed.

 

“N-N-N-NO B-B-B NO BALLS!” goku said, shaking and looking traumatised.

 

“WHAT?!? THE DRAGON BALLS?!” Bulma shouted, as she checked her bag. When she found out that the dragon balls were still there, she sighed. “don’t scare me like that, kid!”

 

“N-N-NO!” goku said. “Y-YOUR BALLS! Your balls are gone!” he said, pointing at her groin.

 

“huh?” bulma looked at her groin, blushing in embarassement as she looked at goku with anger. “ ALRIGHT, WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WHILE I WAS SLEEPING?”

“ I-I-I-I Wanted  to sleep on the bed. But when I laid my head on your lap, I felt no bumps, unlike when I did the same thing with my grandpa, so I took off your underwear to see why, and… oh my god, it was horrible!” goku sat down, scared as hell at what he just saw. He held his hands on his head, thinking that bulma is gonna hit him again.

 

“Oh my fucking god!” bulma sweared. She couldn’t believe that goku was so clueless to the point that he  didn’t know the difference between boys and girls. “ Get out! I’m done with your stupidity! This is going too far! Get out! And don’t ever come back!” she ordered, kicking him out, literally.

 

“b-but bulma!” goku said, only to be met with a facefull of machine gun bullets, which, of course, had no effect on his hardy little body.

Goku was facing the housein the middle of the field, then left in the other direction, confused at what just happened. It wasn’t his fault that he was curious! He didn’t do anything wrong, in his mind.

 

He was now all alone again, in the cold woods. And he was hungry.

So he went hunting for a wolf, a centipede, a deer, any meat really, as long as he eats. Then, while walking, he saw a sea turtle trying to escape from a charging bear. “Help me!” the turtle said.

Completely oblivious to the fact that the turtle just talked, goku immediately went to its rescue, stopping the bear dead on its track.

The bear was wearing samurai armor, and had a huge katana in his hand. He looked ready to kill. And he was standing on his two rear paws. Goku recognised it as an anthromorph, animals who could not only stand up and walk on two feet like humans, but also have human-like behaviours and could talk.

 

“Back off, kid!” the bear growled “This turtle is my meal! Unless you wanna take it for yourself?”  


“Please, get him away from me, boy!” the turtle pleaded.

“ why does he want to eat you? Do you taste good?” goku asked, much to the turtle’s horror.

“oh no, I am definitely not edible!” the turtle hazily responded.

“Yeah, you’re right, turtles must not taste really good, so why do you wanna eat some?” goku then asked the bear.

 

“AARGH! SHUT UP, ALREADY! IF YOU DON’T WANT TO BACK OFF, THEN DIE!!” thee bear shouted, as he swung his katana at goku. Gokuimmediately took out his staff and blocks the katana, its blade forging a small crack in the staff’s wood.

“That staff… it can’t be!” the turtle thought as it went to hiding

 

Goku then deviated the sword to the right. The bear then takes a backhand swing with his blade, but goku jumps over it, landing on a branch.

“Heh, you’re pretty fast for a runt!” the bear taunted, as he swung at the tree branch, cutting it in half, but goku avoids it and jumps around the trees like a monkey, confusing the bear more and more until it’s dizzy.

 

Once the bear was dizzy, goku jumped out of a tree and smashes his staff on the bear’s skull, killing it instantly. As goku landed, he went towards the turtle. “Its’ alright, you can come out, now!” he assured the creature.

 

The turtle slowly got out of the bushes, smiling at goku.

“Oh, thank you so much!” it said. “Say, what is that staff you got, boy?”

“That’s nyoibo, my grandpa’s staff!” goku responded.

“Nyoibo?!” the turtle exclaimed, surprised at what he just heard. “You mean, your grandfather is son gohan?”  
  
“wait, you know him?” goku asked with great surprise.

“ not personally, but he was a student of my master, the turtle hermit!” the turtle answered. “in fact, nyoibo belonged to the hermit, but he gave it to gohan as a parting gift when he finished his training.”

“Woah!” goku shouted. “you’re grandpa’s master’s turtle? Can I meet him?”

“sure, the turtle hermit would love to meet his best student’s grandson!” the turtle exclaimed. “although I fear that the sea is too far away to reach on foot from our current position, and I don’t think we might be fast enough to avoid any potential danger.”

 

“cause you’re a turtle? No offense, of course.” goku said.

 

“ None taken.” The turtle assured. “I’m well aware that  I don’t have the speed of an hare!”

 

“Hey, I know someone who can take you to the sea!” gokusaid, thinking of bulma. “come, she’s right over there!”

 

Goku then picked up the turtle on his back and went to bulma’s capsule house. Goku then carefully dropped the turtle and told him to wait here.

 

“Hey, bulma!”  


“GO AWAY!!” she screamed.

 

“Look, I’m sorry for earlier.” Goku said. “ but this turtle right here needs our help!”  


“…Hold on, what?” bulma couldn’t quite understand that last statement. She opened the door to find goku accompanied by a sea turtle.

 

“What’s that turtle doing here?” bulma asked.

 

“ please, I need your help!” the turtle said.

 

“WHAT?? Did the turtle just talked??” bulma was stupefied.

“ oh, I am no ordinary turtle, as you can see.” The turtle continued. “ I am an anthromorph, an animal that can talk.”

“this voyage can’t get any weirder!” bulma thought in her head. “w-w-what can I help you with, mr.turtle?” bulma couldn’t believed she just asked that question.

“a storm sent me far away from the sea, and I’m looking to go back to my master. Fortunately, your little friend saved me from a bear, and he said that you could help me get to the sea without danger.”

“Yeah, and the turtle is friends with my grandpa’s master!” goku added.

“Really?, you know his grandpa?” bulma asked the turtle.

“Oh yes, son gohan was my master’s disciple in the martial arts!” the turtle affirmed.

“son gohan? That’s a nice name.” Bulma thought.

“so, bulma, shall we help him?” goku asked.

Bulma actually wanted none of that turtle. She only wanted to search for the dragon balls. However, seeing that goku was really insistent about it, and thinking that it would be the perfect opportunity to reconcile with him, she accepted.

“okay. But hold on, I need to change.” She said, closing the door.

A few minutes passed, and goku and the turtle were still waiting for bulma.

“What’s taking her so long?” goku asked. “it doesn’t take that long to put some clothes on! She’s as slow as a turtle! No offense.”

“none taken” the turtle reassured.

After a while, bulma finally came out of the house, wearing her deep red jacket, but this time, wearing beige short shorts. The house then disappeared in front of goku and the turtle’s amazed gaze. Bulma then summons from a capsule another car, a jeep, this time.

 

“come on, let’s go!” bulma said.

 

Both goku and the turtle entered the jeep, and off they go to the sea!

 

They finally arrived a half-hour later to a beach, the waves crashing into the white-hot sand. Once the jeep rolled into the sand, bulma parked it and everybody leaves it. The turtle looked like he just found the grail upon feasting its eyes on the endless map of water.

 

“Oh, thank you so much!” the turtle said, almost crying. “I can finally go back to my master!”

“hey, aren’t we supposed to meet him? I wanna know about what techniques he  taught to my  grandpa!”

“Uh, no, goku, we got dragon balls to find!” bulma said.

“Oh, but of course!” the  turtle said. “I will bring him to you! He will be happy to meet gohan’s grandson! Wait here, I’ll be right back!”

“ oh no, are you serious?” bulma sighed.

“Please, bulma!” pleaded goku.

“Okay, we’ll wait here, but you better bring him here soon!” bulma ordered.

“Guaranteed!” the turtle exclaimed. “ I may not be the fastest on the surface, but I’m the fastest swimmer among all sea turtles!” he boasted, as he went into the ocean and swam away at great speed.

 

“Just when I thought I knew everything about animals…”bulma said to herself.

“Hey, bulma, thanks for helping us!” goku said. “ I thought you really didn’t want to see me again?”

“Yeah, well…” bulma began, thinking about what to say. “…just thinking about it, I almost abandoned a kid alone in the woods. I mean, yeah,you can definitely take care of yourself, but still, it would make me a horrible person if I actually went through with it. Besides, I shouldn’t have reacted to your cluelessness about human etiquette and manners like that. I should have been more patient.”

“ It’s alright, bulma.” Goku accepted her apology. “I knew that, deep down, you like me, even if I’m not as smart as you are.”

“ wow, YOU, acknowledging your own cluelessness? You’re making progress!” she sarcastically said.

“what progress?”

“…nevermind…uh? hey, look!”

Bulma pointed to the sea, with goku watching, as the silhouette of the turtle came back, this time carrying someone on its back.

As it got closer to shore, goku and bulma had a clearer vision of the person. It was an old, bald, scrawny-looking man wearing sandals, white shorts, a Hawaiian shirt and sunglasses on his face. He had a big wooden staff inhis left hand, and he had a turtle shell on his back. Once the turtle reached shore, the old man jumped off of its back and landed in the sand.

“Woah, Amazing jump for an old man!” goku exclaimed.

“I ain’t no ordinary old man. I am the turtle hermit!” the old man shouted. “However, you can call me master roshi. So, you must be son gohan’s grandson, I presume?”  


“Yup! I’m son goku! And this is my friend, bulma”

Master  roshi looked at bulma intently, weirding out bulma. “So that’s the master of goku’s grandpa?” she thought.

“I heard you youngsters saved my turtle from a bear?” the hermit said.

“Well, goku did, I was in my capsule house.” Bulma corrected.

“I see. So, your grandpa taught you martial arts?”

“yeah!” goku affirmed. “he never told me he had a master!”

“he didn’t? that’s unusual, he always praises me to his fellow martial artists.” Roshi said. “how’s he going?”

“he’s dead.” Goku says.

“Really? That’s sad.” Roshi said mournfully. “he was a good man, and the best student I ever had. I’m glad you inherited his good nature, goku!”

“say, you wanna teach me what he learned from you?” goku asked.

“Goku, the dragon balls, remember?” bulma reminded goku.

“oh yeah, right!” goku said. “maybe after we find the dragon balls, you can train me?”

“Maybe, maybe…” roshi answered. “now, to thank you for saving my turtle, I will give you a gift from the gods!” he said, pointing his staff to the sky and shouting:

 

“COME FORTH, IMMORTAL PHOENIX!!”

A few seconds pass, nothing happens.

“Um, sir…”the turtle began talking. “…The immortal phoenix is deceased, remember? From food poisoning?”

“An immortal bird that is dead?” thought bulma.

“AH yeah, right!” roshi remembered, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment. “the phoenix gave me his immortality in exchange of something precious!” he remembered.

“so, what are ya gonna give me?” goku asked.

“I dunno, I dunno…”he said, walking in circles as he thanked. “AH, YES! I know what to give ya!” he said, as he once again pointed towards the sky.

 

“COME FORTH, KINTO’UN!”

Upon shouting these words, a cloud descended from the sky, and stopped in front of the hermit. Bulma didn’t react at all. She seen so much scientifically inexplainable things over the past days that a flying cloud is simply tame compared to what she saw.

“Woah! What is that?”goku asked.

“that’s the supersonic cloud, kinto’un!” roshi answered. “it’s yours, boy!”

“is it something to eat?” goku asked.

“Clouds aren’t edible!” bulma said.

“Indeed, they aren’t.” roshi said. “but this one can take you anywhere in the world faster than you can say Go!  However, I should warn you, that you can only fly it if you’re pure of heart!”

“Really?” goku and bulma asked.

“Yes! Here, look!”roshi jumped on the cloud, only to fall through and land right on his shell, waving his limbs like an upside down turtle, while goku and bulma were laughing at his misery. The turtle eventually pushed his master back on his feet.

“That’s bullshit!” the turtle hermit shouted. “I’ve been riding this cloud all my life! I am as pure-hearted as anybody!”

“I beg to differ.” The turtle said.

“WHAT’S THAT?”

“nothing, master.”

“ yeah, an old man like you is not fit to ride it!”bulma said, as she jumped on the cloud, only to have the same result as roshi. “WHAT? How am I unpure? Is it a crime to be this beautiful?”

Now, only goku was left. He took a deep breath, and jumped. He closed his eyes…only to open them as his feet landed perfectly on the cloud! Excited, goku began jumping around and make the cloud fly all over the place! “WEEEEE!!!” he shouted, as he flew at the speed of sound.

 

“Amazing!” bulma thought, as she watched goku fly around. “there must be a scientific explanation to this cloud.”

While bulma was thinking, she saw a bright orange light emitting from master roshi’s collar. Upon closer inspection, it looked a lot likea dragon ball.

“hey, can I have a look at that ball?” bulma asked.

“Huh? You mean, this?”roshi wondered, holding the now-confirmed dragonball in his hand.

“OMG, that’s a dragon ball! The three-star one!” bulma exclaimed.

 

“ah, right, you’re after the dragon balls!” roshi remembered. “pretty, isn’t it? I can give it to you…”

“YES, please!” bulma pleaded.

“…but under one condition.”roshi said.

“What?” the purple-haired girl asked.

 

Roshi then blushed.

 

“…will you show me your breasts?”

 

“YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?!” Bulma shouted, knocking out the turtle hermit with a thunderous flying kick. Master roshi laid there with his limbs in the air, completely knocked out.

 

“Oh my!” the turtle exclaimed upon seeing the violence of an angry bulma. “I knew your perverted ways would bite you in the buttocks, master!” says the turtle to his unconscious master.

“ (puff puff) you mind if I take his dragon ball?” bulma asked the turtle.

“yes, you can take it. He had it coming, anyways.” Says the turtle.

 

With that said, bulma took the dragon ball from roshi’s collar. Goku saw roshi unconscious, and stopped kinto’un.

“Huh? Why did you knock him out, bulma?”

“NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS!” bulma exclaimed to goku. “Look what the old man had on him!” she said, showing him the dragon ball.

“Woah! He had that on him?” goku wondered.

“Yes, now let’s get outta here!” bulma said, as she quickly put goku in the jeep and started the engines.

 

“Thank you for everything!” the turtle shouted at them.

“No problem!” both goku and bulma shouted at the turtle as they turned around to face the road and accelerated to the woods, heading to the next dragon ball, wondering what sorts of adventure awaits them...

 

END OF CHAPTER 2.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so yeah, another divergence happens here. the whole incident where bulma accidentaly flashes her vajayjay to roshi is avoided because goku actually told bulma what he did while she was asleep. also, the encounter with the turtle goes slightly differently, as well.
> 
> thank you for reading!


	3. The pig and the desert bandit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As they chased and eventually caught the shapeshifting pig oolong for stealing their dragon balls, goku and bulma , seeking the dangerous fire mountain tofind the next dragon ball, walks across hte scorchingly hot desert, where thirst, heat and a dangerous desert bandit awaits them and their pig hostage!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Following is not for profit. it is strictly a fan work meant for personal amusement. Dragon ball, dragon ball z and dragon ball super is property of Akira toriyama, toyotaro, shueisha, Toei animation and shonen jump. please support the official release.
> 
> Some ideas from this fanfic are taken from Lawrence Simpson, AKA: Masakox of teamfourstar fame. check out his what-ifs, they're pretty interesting!

 

“GET BACK HERE, YOU THIEF!!!” Bulma screamed at the huge flying condor that she was pursuing onboard her jeep at full speed throughout the canyons. She and goku stopped at a village where a monster was terrorising the villagers, bullying them for money and their daughters. They soon learned that the monster itself was a shapeshifter named oolong, and once they forced him to surrender all the girls in the village back to their families, oolong took advantage to steal the dragon balls!

“HAHAHA, IT’S SO EASY!!” shouted the monster, who turned into a condor after stealing the balls. “If what the legend says is true, then I’ll be mega rich!” oolong said, looking at the stolen dragon balls in its claws.

However, he wasn’t the only one flying through the canyon, as goku was puruing him with his newly acquired kinto’un. The two engaged in an aerial pursuit that looked almost like a ballet. Goku came closer to oolong, scaring him.

“YOU’ll NEVER GET ME! THESE BALLS ARE MINE!!” he shouted…before turning into a puff of smoke, goku collecting the falling dragon balls. As the puff of smoke disappeared, oolong appeared, this time, in its true form: a pig in army uniform. You see, oolong’s weakness is that he can only keep a transformation for 5 minutes maximum.

“AAAAAAHHHHHH!!!” he screamed as fell to his apparent death…until bulma pulled a matress from the roof of her jeep, and oolong crashed right into it. oolong tried to flee, but goku’s kinto’un stopped right in front of him, and bulma catches him with a huge net.

Once they tied him up, they pushed him into the backseat of the jeep. Once that deed was done, they went off to the horizon.

“Can’t imagine what kind of wish you would make, what with you kidnapping girls around!” bulma said.

“OINK! I don’t wanna wish for girls, I wanted infinite wealth!” oolong said with his nasally voice. “And i had no bad intentions for kidnapping girls, I just wanted some company! You don’t know how lonely it is, living in a big mansion like mine!”

“you mean the house you built because you stole money from the villagers?” bulma asked asked.

“I didn’t steal it, it was charity work!” oolong lied.

“I’m hungry.” Goku said, his stomach gargling. “hey, bulma, can we cook the pig?”

“WHAT KIND OF IDEA IS THAT??” oolong screamed in terror at what goku suggested.

“Sure, if he doesn’t shut up!” bulma said.

“HEY, I’M A LIVING BEING!” oolong shouted angrily. “I HAVE RIGHTS, YKNOW? I ‘LL GLADLY SEND MY LAWYER TO SUE YOUR ASSES!”

“sure, wha-“ bulma didn’t finish her line, because her jeep suddenly stopped in the middle of the canyon. It ran out of fuel.

“Oh no no no no NO!!” bulma said, smashing her fists on the steering wheel. “WHY CAN’T LIFE JUST GIVE ME A BREAK, FOR ONCE??”

“Why did we stopped, bulma?” goku asked.

“You blind or somethin’?” oolong rhetorically asked. “The jeep’s outta fuel, which means we have to go to wherever you guys are going on foot.

“Ah, ok!” goku said. “ I needed to stretch my limbs, anyway!”

“…you know its scorchingly hot in the desert, right?” oolong asked.

“yeah, but it’s alright, walking is better!” goku said.

“…Who is that kid?” oolong asked, exasperated by goku’s inpertinent optimism.

“He’s always like that.” Says a sighing bulma.

Everybody got out of the car, oolong jumping out of his seat due to still being tied.

“now don’t try to transform on us!” bulma warned.

“I can’t when my hands are tied!” oolong said. “my limbs need to be completely free if I want to transform! “

“Good!” bulma exclaimed, before checking her dragon radar. “we’re in the right direction, at least. To the northeast we go!” bulma said, as she began walking, with goku and oolong following her. Oolong was thinking about where they were going.

“hold on a minute…”oolong began to say, as he had a look of worry on his face. “…to the northeast of the desert is…You’re not going to fire mountain, are ya?” he asked nervously.  
“ Yeah, why?” bulma asked.

“OH MY GOD, What are you doing?” oolong anxiously shouted. “ That’s where the ox king gyumao lives! Don’t go there!”

“Who’s gyumao?” goku asked.

“He’s a real demon,let me tell ya!” the pig said. “Anyone who dares get closer to his castle gets killed by him! Surely, you got a death wish if ya wanna go to fire mountain!”

“no, it’s because the closest dragonball is there.” Bulma corrected. “Why would gyumao kill people?” she asked oolong.

“apparently, he guards a huge treasure locked inside his castle.” Oolong revealed. “ though I doubt anybody would ever find it, not just because of gyumao, but also because fire mountain is literally up in flames!

“Really? Why’s that?” bulma asked.

“Stories says that, back in the day, fire mountain was a chill place to live, but, one day, an angel came to visit the ox king, and he pissed him off royaly! So much so, that he set the whole mountain on fire as punishment for the ox king’s rude behaviour!”

“is the smoke we’re seeing at the distance from the mountain?” goku asked as he pointed towards a distant smokescreen. Bulma saw it too, and was equally curious.

“Yup, that’s the smoke from fire mountain, alright!” oolong confirmed. “but I’m warning ya, don’t go there, even if your dragon ball is inside that castle! Gyumao will tear ya to shreds!”

“If he’s that strong, I can’t wait to fight him!” goku said

“ARE YOU INSANE, KID??” oolong shouted.

“insanely strong, you mean!” bulma said. “as long as goku is around, we’re safe. Let’s go to fire mountain!”

“NO, YOU DON’T GET IT!” oolong shouted. “The ox king is way stronger than any human being and…”

Oolong kept on talking, but goku and bulma continued walking in the endless sea of sand and rocks that is the desert. The scorching hot heat pressing on their skin, making them lose their breath.

However, little did they know they were being watched…

On a large rock not far from here, a blue cat was surveying the trio with a telescope. It smiled sinisterly, then flew away into a hole in a rock nearby. Inside the rock was a makeshift home full of seemingly stolen goodies. There was a fridge. A TV Set with an NES, a table, an oven, a bed and a bookshelf. Along with these appliances were many stolen jewels and a safe full of stolen zennies and capsules. On the table was a young man eating a slice of bread. He was tall, had long, dark hair covering his back. His skin was tanned from the rays of the balzing sun, and he was wearing an ancient Chinese soldier’s uniform.

“Yamcha, Yamcha!” the cat called the man. “I found some people wandering near our spot!”

Upon hearing what the cat said, the man called yamcha got up from the table, took the telescope, and spied on the trio walking.

“Hmm…they don’t look like they have lots of zennies…” yamcha said.

“But they might have capsules!’ the cat said.

“hmm, true… get the hoverbike, puar!” yamcha ordered the cat.

“YESSIR!” puar exclaimed, as he flew to the hoverbike parked inside yamcha’s rocky home…

Meanwhile, the trio continued walking towards the fire mountain. Goku was perfectly fine, but bulma and the tied up oolong were basically dying from the infernal heat of the desert. Bulma, in particular, looked like she was gonna collapse at any point.

“C’mon, guys, you’re so slow!” goku said.

“H…how can you withstand that h…”bulma didn’t finish her phrase, cause she fell on the sand exhausted from the heat.

“h-hey, bulma!” goku exclaimed, sprinting towards the unconscious bulma.

“She’s exhausted because of that damn heat.” Oolong assured him. “hey, kid, let me tell ya something."

“What?”

“I have an RV inside a capsule.” Oolong said. “if you untie me, we can get outta here faster than a gazelle being chased by a lion!”

“What’s an RV?” Goku asked.

“It’s a huge van, with lots of things in it!” says oolong. “now, please,untie me!”

“but bulma said not to!” goku said.

“HEY! YOU WANNA DIE OF THIRST IN THIS DESERT OR NOT?” oolong asked him with desperation in his voice.

“ hey, what’s that heading our way?” goku asked, pointing to the hoverbike that was coming closer and closer to them.

When oolong saw who was on the hoverbike, his face went pale. “OH no, we’re screwed!” he shouted.

The hoverbike stopped in front of the duo, yamcha and uar getting off of it, with a seemingly sympathetic look on their face.

“Yo!” greeted yamcha.

“I have a bad feeling about this…” oolong said anxiously.  
“Who are you? goku asked.

“I am yamcha, the king of the desert!” yamcha said.

“and I’m puar!” the cat introduced itself.

“I don’t wanna hurt a boy like you, so give me all the money or capsules that you have if ya wanna get outta here alive!” yamcha ordered.

“wait, puar? Crybaby puar?” oolong asked, pointing at the cat.

“Oolong?” puar said, surprised.

“Y'know the pig, puar?” yamcha asked

“Yeah!” puar confirmed. “We went to the same school together, and he always bullied me! One day, he tried stealing the teacher’s panties!”

“wow, you have a great memory, nerd!”oolong taunted.

“I hate you! you’re a pig!” puar said.

“And you’re a pussy!” oolong fought back.

“Anyways, it doesn’t matter. “yamcha said with evil intent. “you better hurry up and give me your money or your capsules if ya wanna live!”

Oolong is scared, and was looking for a solution when he looked at goku. “Hey, kid, you know martial arts and you’re super strong, right?” he asked him.

“yeah, why?” goku wondered.

“HAHA!!” oolong shouted, as if he found the cure for cancer. “your name’s yamcha, right? We have no intentions of handing you anything, so if you don’t wanna get hurt, you better hurry up and scram!”

“so…” says yamcha as he picks up his katana from its sheet. “…you really wanna go to heaven, don’t you?”

Oolong, seeing that he was getting serious, pushes goku in front of him. “Here, take him out kid!”

“why?” goku asked. “is he a bad guy?”

“DIDN’T YOU HEAR WHAT HE SAID?” shouted oolong. “HE WANTS TO KILL US!!” goku then turned to face yamcha.

“Why do you wanna kill us?” he asked to the desert bandit.

“…what an idiot.” Yamcha thought after hearing that stupid question.

“o-o-oh please god, make it work!” oolong prayed to himself, his small body shaking with stress. He looked at bulma, who was asleep on the sand. “geez, she sure is nice and relaxed!” he sarcastically said.

Yamcha then lunged forward and swung his katana at goku, but the monkey boy avoids everyone of his swings, taking out his nyoibo to parry every strike coming his way. Goku then climbed a series of rocks to reach the top of an old rocky bridge, looking to gain some distance. Hoever, yamcha showed incredible skills, managing to wall-run his way to the top of the bridge, facing goku.

The battle continued, as yamcha kept the pressure on goku, looking to create an opening. He went for it with a horizontal slash to the side, buut goku saw it coming, jumped over the attack and tried smashing yamcha’s head with his noibo, but yamcha blocks it in time. Goku then flipped himself behind yamcha, who saw his katana disintegrating in pieces! “H-how can this be?” yamcha thought stupefied. “There’s only one staff that is as strong as steel…”

“hey, kid? What’s that staff you’re carrying?” yamcha asked goku.

“That’s nyoibo!” goku boasted, confirming yamcha’s suspicions. “It belonged to my grandpa!”

“only one man possessed that staff…” yamcha said in his head. “What’s the name of your grandpa?” yamcha asked goku.

“Son gohan.” Goku answered.

“I thought so!” yamcha exclaimed.

“wait, you know him?” goku wondered.

“Son gohan is a living legend in the martial arts world.” Yamcha explained “He was so good, that nobody ever beat him! Didn’t know he had a grandson, but now that I know who you are…” yamcha then leaned backwards, forming fangs with his hands. “…I won’t be holding anything back!” he said.

Goku was about to take a defensive stance…but then, his stomach starts growling. “man, I’m really hungry!” goku sighed.

“HERE I COME! ROUGA FUFUKEN!!!” Yamcha shouted as he started imitating the howl of a wolf.

Goku was so distracted by his hunger that he didn’t see yamcha kicking him like he was going for goal. Wave after wve of open-handed strikes came as goku’s face and body gets slashed and cut all over the place at an incredible speed, until yamcha finish it with a double palm strike sending goku flying through and destroying pillars in the process.

While yamcha looked on confidently and puar was congratulating him, oolong was afraid, thinking that goku couldn’t get up from that one.

And then, yamcha stared at him, scaring him even more.

“Hehehe, um, G-Great! You’re awesome, yamcha!” oolong praised him nervously “if I knew how strong you were, I would’ve coached you! You’d definitely win the tenkaichi budokai!”

Of course, yamcha knew it was all empty words, and menacingly approached the pig, cracking his own knuckles.

“SHIT! TRANSFORMATION…oh crap, I’m still tied!” said oolong as he realised he can’t transform.

“GO HAM ON HIM, YAMCHA!” puar ordered. “MAKE HIM PAY FOR THE CONSTANT BULLYING HE GAVE ME!”

However, before he did anything, yamcha received nyoibo right in the face! He flew almost 3 feet from puar and oolong’s position. When he got up, he put his hand on his jaw and saw that goku was still standing, with scratches and cuts all over his face and gi. And goku was not in a good mood!

“Ow that hurts!” goku shouted.

“so you survived my wolf Fang fist…” yamcha said.

“YAMCHA, YAMCHA! YOUR TEETH IS MISSING!” puar shouted.

“Wait, what?” yamcha said. Puar transforms himself into a mirror. Yamcha grabs it and checks his smile. When he saw that a tooth was missing, he screamed like a girl and started comically crying.

“NOOOO!!! MY OLYMPIC BEAUTY IS NOW RUINED!! I ILL NEVER GET A GIRLFRIEND!!” he lamented, pointing his fists at the heavens.

“well, you can join us and use the dragon balls to wish back your teeth.”goku said.

Yamcha only turned around and lunged towards goku like a wolf jumping at its prey. He tried punching goku, but goku stopped it with a punch of his own!

“ROCK…”

Goku then poked yamcha’s eyes, blinding him…

“…SCISSORS…”

…before finishing his combo with a big open-palm strike that sent yamcha crashing into a nearby rock!

“…PAPER!!”

Puar went to check if yamcha was ok, while oolong congratulated him. However, yamcha got up from the rubbles and was really angry.

“Y…you little shit!” he said, looking to use the wolf fang fist again.

As he was charging, goku just stood there, too hungry to move. Yamcha was going for the kill… until he heard a feminine voice.

“H-hey, whats going here? Why is it so noisy?” bulma said as she yawned.

Upon hearing her voice, yamcha turned around and faced bulma. He stood completely still, stunned by this incredible beauty that was staring at him, before falling sideways like a frozen statue.

“YAMCHA! Are you al-“

“Let’s get outta here, puar!! Yamcha shouted as he jumed on the hoverbike and left the scene.

Goku fell on his butt, way too hungry to continue, while oolong stood there, amazed at the sheer luck that has bestowed the trio. Then, bulma appeared in a jolly mood.

“Who is this guy?” bulma said in a girly tone. “He’s really cute!”

“…We’re not out of the woods yet…”oolong sighed.

“yeah, we just left it a while ago!” goku said.

“IT’S A FIGURE OF SPEECH, DUMBASS!” oolong shouted. “Now untie me, we will use my RV!”  
à  
“Wait, you have an RV?” bulma asked.

“Yup, inside this capsule I got.” Oolong confirmed. “Now if you just untie me, we can finally get outta here!”

“oh yes, finally, some air conditioning!” bulma said. “But you better not make any moves!”

“Yeah, yeah, just untie me already!” oolong ordered.

Bulma untie oolong’s arms and he summoned the RV from his capsule. As soon as the vehicle appeared, all three enetere it, goku finally enjoying a meal to fill his empty stomach. Bulma soon started the engines and off they go to fire mountain…

Meanwhile, back at yamcha’s home, he was playing multiplayer contra with puar.

“hey, yamcha, why did you run away after you saw that girl?” puar asked.

“I-i-it’s a long story…”yamcha said, embarrassed. “to make it short, I am really, really afraid of girls. Everytime I see one, i-i-I freeze in place! I-i-it’s always like that.”

“woah, sucks to be you.” Puar said.

“but wait…”yamcha paused the game. “…didn’t the kid said something about dragon balls?” he asked to puar.

“Yeah, he did!” puar answered

“What the hell are those?” yamcha asked.

“They told this story back in my school: apparently there are seven dragon balls that, once you collect them all, a dragon will appear and grant you one wish!”

“and he was saying that as if they truly existed…” yamcha whispered.

“maybe they have them!” puar said. “do you know what that means?”

“Yeah…” says yamcha as a smile appears on his face. “…we’ll track them down, steal their dragon balls…AND WISH FOR MY FEAR OF GIRLS TO DISAPPEAR!!”

“…lame.” Puar whispered.

“I heard that, puar!”

“I mean, yamcha, think about this! We can wish for infinite wealth or something like that!” puar reasoned. “Didn’t ya always wanted to go to college to be a baseball player?” 

“well, yeah…” yamcha said, thinking about this whole situation. “…but I would still be afraid of girls! What major league superstar would I be if I cant even face my army of fangirls? And what if I meet the girl I would eventually marry? There’s nothing I can do about it! I must wish to get rid of my fear!”

“but what about getting money for college?” puar asked.

“we can still steal it, now let’s go, puar!” yamcha says as he sits on the motorbike and flies away.”

“Hey, wait for me! God, I can’t believe how unreasonable he is!” puar exclaimed as he flew to catch up to his master…

END OF CHAPTER 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YAMCHA! MAH MAN!!
> 
> i basically combined the two encounters with yamcha together, just like the first dragon ball movie. i also skipped the episode withoolong, as i felt it didn't bring much to the story beyond introducing an ultimately useless side character.
> 
> and don't worry, yamcha will have a much better fate in the long run!


	4. The Eternal flames

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> At last, the trio arrives at the fire mountain, where the dangerous ox king, gyumao, awaits them! howevr, once he realises that goku is his late friedn son gohan's son, he asks him to find master roshi so that he can put off the flames surrounding his castle at fire mountain. he also asks our monkey boy to find his daughter chi-chi, who was sent on the same mission...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Following is not for profit. it is strictly a fan work meant for personal amusement. Dragon ball, dragon ball z and dragon ball super is property of Akira toriyama, toyotaro, shueisha, Toei animation and shonen jump. please support the official release.
> 
> Some ideas from this fanfic are taken from Lawrence Simpson, AKA: Masakox of teamfourstar fame. check out his what-ifs, they're pretty interesting!

 

Two days have passed since son goku, bulma and oolong left the desert aboard oolong’s RV. We find the trio still driving across the northeastern country roads. Oolong was driving the car, while goku was sleeping out of boredom and bulma was applying makeup to her face.

 

“lalalala, I wonder if I’ll ever see that handsome man again?” said bulma in a sing-songy voice. Oolong is annoyed at the fact that bulma had never seen the moment when the man in question, the desert bandit yamcha, tried to kill them in order to steal their money and capsules. When bulma got done with hermakeup, she putted it in her handbag. That’s where she began feeling the hot air outside thanks to the open window nearby.

 

“Whew, why is it still hot?” bulma asked, we’re supposed to be moving north, it should be colder.”

 

“that’s because we are nearing the fire mountain…I can’t believe you still want to go there!” oolong said.

 

“The dragon ball is there, the dragon radar shows it!” bulma said.

 

“you really have a death wish, do you?”

 

“I almost died attempting to experiment something with acid back home!”bulma said, annoyed at oolong repeating himself. “I’m ready to die to finish a work! So stop it with that deathwish crap!”

 

“…a dumb bitch like you is a scientist?”  


“WHO’S THE DUMB BITCH, YOU FUCKI-“

 

And thus a fight started, bulma attempting to strangle oolong, waking up goku and making the RV drive in all kinds of direction. Upon waking up, goku saw a huge wall of flames surrounding a mountain infront of them.

 

“Woah! Hey, look, that mountain’s on fire!” goku exclaimed.

 

Upon hearing what goku said, oolong and bulma stopped their fighting, got out of the RV and looked at the infernal vision in front of them. They couldn’t even see the mountains. That’s how intense the flames surrounding it was!

 

“Woah! We can’t even see anything with these falmes!” bulma exclaimed.

 

“Except that house on top of the hill!” goku said.

 

“That’s gyumao’s castle.” Oolong said. “ he has all of his treasure inside it. Of course, like I said, everyone that gets near it gets beheaded!”

 

“So the dragon ball must definitely be in there.” Bulma said, looking at the castle.

 

“Maybe, but I’m still not going! I’m getting outta here!” oolong said as he tried jumping into the RV, but bulma catches him in mid-air.

 

“Listen up, you pig!” bulma said with severity. “We spent two days on the road searching for that dragon ball, and I don’t want our only getaway vehicle to bail out on us! So you stay here and make yourself useful, got it?”

 

“OK, OK, I got it!” oolong said. Bulma then dropped him, and ordered him to follow them. Oolong was very anxious over going tpo the mountain.

 

“So this gyumao guy is in the castle?” goku asked oolong.

 

“no, he’s protecting it from the bottom.” Oolong answered.

 

“You know a lot of things!” bulam said.

 

“That’s what they taught me in schoolbooks!” oolong said.

 

Feeling that they were at a point of no return, the trio took a collective breath and headed towards the blazing flames of the fire mountain, where the ox king and the dragon ball awaits…

 

Meanwhile, yamcha and puar were tracking down the gang inside their old-looking car, following the tire tracks that oolong’s RV left on the road. The tracks led them near the fire mountain.

 

“so they really were heading there…” yamcha wondered.

“What would they doin fire mountain?” puar asked. “Don’t they know that the ox king lives there?”

 

“I think so, yes…” yamcha  said, caressing his chin, thinking. “…after all, the kid is son gohan’s grandson.”

 

“What does this have to do wi-“

 

“Son gohan and the ox kings are friends.” Yamcha interrupted. “they were trained by the legendary turtle hermit. As for what they are doing to fire mountain? Maybe there after the treasure…”

 

“or looking for a dragon ball!” puar said.

 

“…Maybe the dragon ball is part of the treasure?” yamcha guessed. “anyways, there must be a good reason they’d be there, and the kid being son gohan’s grandson might help them be friends with the  ox king so that they take the dragon ball or the treasure…or maybe both.”

 

“we should get to the treasure before they do!”

 

“Right! That treasure and the dragon ball wi-“

 

“AAAAAAAHH!! HELP ME!!!” a girly voice screamed at the distance, distracting yamcha and puer.

 

Not far from here, a little girl with long, black hair, a blue qipao dress and a helmet with a blade on it, was running away from a big tyrannosaurus rex, screaming for help. After running for a while, she turend around, facing the angry t-rex, and threw the blade of her helmet towards the t-rex’s head, decapitating it. The dino’s severed head landed right in front of her, scaring her as she instinctively fired a laser from a red dot on her helmet to vaporise the t-rex’s head. She then ran towards yamcha’s direction, without knowing where she was going.  She stopped when she saw the desert bandit, who saw the whole scene with  stupefaction.

 

“uh, hello?” yamcha greeted, not sure what to say.

 

“AHH!! STRANGER DANGER!!” the girl screamed as she shot her helmet lazer towards yamcha, who avoids it by the skin of his teeth.

 

“Why you little…” yacha said through his gritting teeth as he  delivered a double axe handle on her head, knocking her out immediately.

 

“Damn, that kid’s a psycho!” yamcha exclaimed after he knocked her out. “Alright, puar, let’s go to fire mountain!”

 

With that said, yamcha and puar re-entered their car and off they went to fire mountain, leaving the girl unconscious.

 

“So, yamcha, you’re afraid of girls, but you’re fine around her?” puar wondered.

 

“Well, duh!” yamcha responded. “She’s a kid, kids don’t give me the saem reactions as girls my age! What, you thought I was a pedo?”

 

“NONONO, I was just wondering, that’s all!”

 

Meanwhile, back at the mountain, the trio managed to get closer to the castle. However, it was far from pretty: not only do they have to deal with the ever-increasing heat as they got closer and closer, but the road was filled with skeletons and remains of the people who either died in the fire or got killed by the ox king. Bulma and goku weren’t impressed, though bulma was putting on a poker face while goku really was not reacting at all. Oolong, however, was practically pissing in his pants.

 

“Ugh! It,s so hot in here!” bulma whined.

 

“S-s-shut up!!” oolong whispered. “Gyumao’s gonna hear ya!

 

Bulma then looked at  the castle on top of the fiery hill, then looked at her dragon radar.

 

“hmm, it does says that the ball is up there…”bulma whispered. “…hey, goku, can you go up there and grab the ball, please?”

 

“Sure thing!” goku said. “KINTO’UN!!” he screamed, as the supersonic cloud appeared in front if him.

 

“SHUT UP!!” oolong exclaimed, hoping that gyumao didn’t heard it.

 

“I’ll be right back!” goku said as he flew to the castle.

 

“Don’t come back until you get it!” bulma shouted.

 

“EVERYONE SHUT UP!!!” oolong exclaimed. “And get back here quick!” he ordered to goku.

 

Goku reached the top of the hill, and patrolled around it on his cloud. When he thought he saw an opening, he flew right into it…only to make a u-turn and go back, due to the infernal heat.

 

“I TOLD YOU, IT’S USELESS! GET BACK HERE,  RIGHT NOW!”oolong shouted to goku.

 

“YOU CAN DO IT, GOKU!! YOUMUST BELI-“

 

CLANG!!!

 

A huge axe hit the ground, scaring bulma and oolong, who truned around to face the almighty ox king, gyumao! He was a huge man, easily 8 feet tall, buff like a bull and he was wearing a full set of ancient Chinese armor, and he had a mean look on his face! Oolong and bulma were sacred like hell.

 

“H-H-HOW ARE YOU, Y-Y-Y-Y-YOUR M-M-MAJESTY?” bulma asked, shaking like a spaghetti.

 

“YOU THERE!!” gyumao shouted with a booming voice that pushed back bulma and oolong. “WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE, AT FIRE MOUNTAIN? DON’T TELL ME YOU’RE HERE TO STEAL MY TREASURE? ANSWER ME!!”

 

“o-o-o-of course not!” said bulma hesitantly. “W-w-we were j-j-just passing by, r-r-right?” she said, looking at oolong.

 

“Y-y-yeah! Definitely!” oolong hesitantly said.

 

At the same time, goku came back down to bulma’s direction.

 

“Guys, I can’t reach the castle.” Goku said.

 

“SHUT UP, GOKU!” bulma shouted.

 

That’s where goku stared at gyumao, to which the ox king did the same.

 

“Who are you, old timer?” goku asked.

 

“BE MORE DIPLOMATIC, DAMMIT!! IT’S THE OX KING!” bulma told him.

 

“Oh god, we’re so dead!” oolong said, ready for the worst.

 

The ox king stared at goku angrily…then looked at his cloud. Suddenly, evry trace of anger left his face, and curiosity and stupefaction, as he stared at the cloud like he found a long-lost relative.

 

“tell me, kid, is that kinto’un?” he asked with an unusually low voice.

 

“yeah.” Goku answered.

 

“No way!” gyumao exclaimed. “Who gave it to you?”

 

“master roshi.” Goku dully said.

 

“REALLY? MASTER ROSHI, THE TURTLE HERMIT?” the ox kingasked,his booming voice reappearing.

 

“Yeah!” goku responded, driving the ox king mad with joy. Does that mean you know my grandpa, too?”

 

“OH, THIS IS  WONDERFUL! Do you  know where roshi is?” gyumao asked, not having heard goku’s previous question.

 

“Yeah, he lives in the sea.” Goku answered.

 

“that means he’s still living in that house in the middle of the sea!” the ox king exclaimed, happy like a baby. “FINALLY, I CAN ENTER MY CASTLE AGAIN!!” he shouted, jumping around.

 

Then, he saw a staff tied to goku’s back.

 

“Wait, is that nyoibo?” he asked goku.

 

“Yup! My grandpa gave it to me!” goku answered.

 

“SON GOHAN WAS YOUR GRANDPA?” gyumao asked, stupefied.

 

“Yeah, how did you know?” goku asked.

 

“UNBELIEVABLE!! GOHAN HAD A GRANDSON!!” gyumao shouted. “did you know that your grandpa and I were students of master roshi?”

 

“Really?  Roshi told me that he trained grandpa, but you, too?” goku asked.

 

“YES!” the ox king confirmed. “HAHAHA! THE WORLD IS SMALL, ISN’T IT?” he said while laughing.

 

While this unexpected meeting happened, yamcha and puar were witnessing everything from behind a wall nearby.

 

“So I was right…”yamcha said. “They are friends with the ox king, after all!”

 

“Oh, that’s right!” the ox king suddenly took a serious tone. “This isn’t the timefor pleasantries! Can I ask you something?” he asked goku.

 

“Sure, what is it?” goku asked.

 

“I heard that master roshi had an object called the “bashousen” in his possession.” Gyumao explained. “ it’s a fan that blows winds strong enough to put down any fire. Can you go to master roshi and pick itup for me, please?”

 

“Okay, sure…” goku said. That was what he originally only said, but then, he looked at bulma, who looked at him  as if he needed to remember something. “…oh, right! Do you think you can give me the dragon ball in return?” goku asked.

 

“dragon ball? What’s that?” gyumao asked in return.

 

“It looks like this.” Goku said,  showing his grandpa’S four-star ball. “apparently, you have one in your castle.”

 

“OH, yes, now, I remember!” the ox king realised. “I put it with the rest of my treasure. Sure, yeah, you can have it in return!” he said, bringing out a positive reaction out of the trio.

 

Back at the nearby wall, yamcha takes a look at the dragon balls.

 

“So they are real…” he thought. “…I thought they were as big as a Football…”

 

“oh, one more thing…”gyumao then said. “…if, somehow, during your voyage, you find my daughter chi-chi, can you bring her back to me?” he asked goku. “I sent her to go look for master roshi. She looks like this…”

 

He then pulled out a picture of a young girl with long, dark hair, a blue qipao and a helmet with a blade on its head.

 

When yamcha saw the picture, he and puar went pale as a ghost.

 

“OMG, what have I done??” yamcha said.

 

“That…that girl is…”

 

“No time to waste, puar! Let’s find her!!” yamcha said as he and puùr hurriedly jumped in their car and went back to the spot where they left chi-chi unconscious.

 

“Please, kami, I hope she’s still there!” begged yamcha as he drove along the country road… then, they saw an unconscious little girl lying on the road.

  
“THERE SHE IS!!” yamcha shouted as he stopped the car and jumped right towards chi-chi. He grabbed her and shook her, trying towake her up. “Please, come to your senses!” he pled.

 

Chi-chi eventually opened her eyes, still groggy. But when he saw the man she remembered as the one that knocked her out, she screamed and tried to shoot him with her laser…

 

“NONONO WAIT, PLEASE, MISS CHI-CHI, DON’T SHOOT!!” pled yamcha.

 

“Huh? You…you know my name?” chi-chi asked, stopping her laser from being activated.

 

“yes…look, im sorry for hitting you, earlier…I actually like you!” yamcha  said, trying to look cool and dashing.

 

“R-really?you love me?” said chi-chi, blushing.

 

“Look at me!” ordere yamcha. “Do I look like I’m joking?” he asked, smiling at her.

 

“You have a missing tooth!”

 

Yamcha was really close to hitting her again, but puar held him away from her. “Keep calm, yamcha!”

 

However, yamcha swathe supersonic cloud from the distance. “oh shit… gotta run, puar!” he said as they both went to the car.

 

“I’ve never had anyon told me they love me before…”said chi-chi in a girly tone. “in the fairy tales, people who love each other get married, holding each other by the hand, and have kids…No way, I’m way too shy!” chi-chi dramactically said.

 

Then, she turned around to see yamcha leaving .

 

“He left? I wonder Why?” she asked herself.

 

 

Son goku was riding kinto’un to go look for master roshi when he saw a young girl around his age on the ground. He lowered  kinto’un so he can meet her.

 

“Hey, are you chi-chi?” goku asked her.

 

“Huh? Y-yes, that’s me.” Chi-chi confirmed. It seemed that everybody knew her name, today. “Have you  come to say you love me, too?”

 

“You’re gyumao’s daughter, right?” goku asked, completely ignoring her question.

 

“huh? You know my father?” she asked.

 

“Yeah. He asked me to go to master roshi to get a wind fan or something…”

 

“Oh, the bashosen!!” chi-chi corrected. “My father sent me  there, as well!”

 

“alright, then you can come with me.” Goku suggested.

 

“HUH? You mean, we can stand on this cloud?” she asked, pointing at kinto’un.

 

“Sure, as long as you’re pure of heart.” Goku precised.

 

“then it’s not a problem!” chi-chi said. “my heart is clean like a washed toilet!” she exclaimed, as she tried climbing on the cloud. However,she had trouble climbing it. Seeing that the boy in fornt of her had a tail, she grabbed it and oulled on it to climb on the cloud. Goku left out a cry of pain, then fell down on the ground.

 

“Oh no! are you ok?” chi-chi asked.

  
“yeah, but…Don’t pull on my tail. I lose all my strength when you grab it.” He explained.

 

“Why do you have a tail?” chi-chi asks.

 

“I dunno…I  was born this way.” Goku said as he jumoed on kinto’un and flew away with chi-chi holding him.

 

In the distance, yamcha was hiding behind a tree. He heard everything, including goku talking about his tail.

 

“Heh heh, we now know how to beat him!” yamcha said, smiling sinisterly.

 

“Yeah! Cut his tail!” puar exclaimed.

 

“Alright, here’s the plan, puar…” yamcha said. “…when they go back to gyumao with the fan, once the fire is put out, we enter the castle, steal the  treasure and the dragon ball, then get outta here! If they ever catch us, we kill the girl and the pig, then we cut the monkey boy’s tail and kill him! Then, we loot for that weird dragon ball locator from the girl’S corpse, and go find the last  dragon ball! Like that, we’ll have both the dragon balls so that  I can get rid of my fear of girls AND a big treasure that we can sell to get filthy rich and start a better life!”

 

“This plan is brilliant, yamcha!” praised puar.

 

“HAHA! Im a genius!” yamcha said to himself.

 

“You ain’t gonna repair your tooth?” puar asked yamcha.

 

“Ugh, I hate dentist…DAMMIT, IT’S ALL THAT GOKU KID’S FAULT!!” he shouted.

 

Meanwhile, goku and chi-chi were flying together above the ocean, looking for master roshi’s house. Then, goku slapped chi-chi’s pelvis, confusing her.

 

“I knew it! You’re a girl! You don,t have a pee-pee!” goku exclaimed.

 

“WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!?” chi-chi shouted as she pushed goku off of kinto’Un. As he was falling down to the ground below, chi-chi slammed herself and kinto’un into a big rock.

 

“What was that for?” goku asked, hid head hurting. “I didn’t do anything wrong!”

 

“WHAT DO YOU MEAN, YOU DIDN’T DO ANYTHING WRONG??” chi-chi rhetorically asked.

 

They then got back on the cloud and flew away to the sea. Chi-chi, after thinking about what just happened, thought that, now that she was touched there by this boy, she had tpo become her bride.

 

“man, the ocean is so big! We’ll never be able to find master roshi’s house…I’m gonna ask someone.” Goku said.

 

“Alright, dear!” chi-chi said in a lovey-lovey tone.

 

“I’m not a deer, I’m a human!” goku said.

 

“NO, I said… oh my goodness!” chi-chi covers her face in embarassement.

 

Goku then spotted a familiar shape swimming in the ocean. As he went closer, he started to see that the shape in question was in fact master roshi’s turtle!

 

“HEY!” goku shouted, attracting the attention of the turtle.

 

“Oh, it’s you! Son gohan’s grandson!” the turtle said.

 

“Wait, you’re the grandson of my father’s best friend?” chi-chi asked.

 

“Yup! I’m son goku!” goku answered chi-chi. “hey, turtle! Do you know where master roshi’s house is?” he asked the turtle.

 

“Yes, of course! Follow me!” the turtle said.

 

“Wow, a real talking turtle, just like in the fairy tales!” chi-chi thought, amazed at what she saw.

 

The turtle guided them in the middle  of the sea, to a remote island where  there was a red and white house in the middle  of it, with the words “KAME HOUSE” written over the door. On the right side of the island was the turtle hermit himself, wiping the sand with a broom.

 

“master!” shouted the turtle, attracting the attention of the hermit. “son gohan’s grandson wants totalk to you!”

 

“well, lookie here! How’ve you been, kid?” roshi asked with a smile.

 

“Fine, what about you, gramps?” goku asked.

 

“Ohh, just fine, just fine!” he responded. “say, who’s the little girl besides you?, your girlfriend or something? She’s definitely less “developed” than that bulma girl, heh heh! ” he said, obfuscating chi-chi.

 

“no, it’s chi-chi, gyumao’s daughter!” goku said, pointing at her.

 

“Really, gyumao’s daughter?” he asked, to which chi-chi replied with only a headbow. “I see, I see…why did you yungsters came here?”

 

“gyumao wants to use your bashosen to extinguish the flames of fire mountain.” Chi-chi asked.

 

“The bashosen… AH, THE WIND FAN!” roshi remembered. “but I don’t remember where I put it…”

 

While rshi was thinking, chi-chi leaned towards goku.

 

“hey, you sure that pervy old man is the turtle hermit?” she asked goku.

 

“yeah.” Goku answered.

 

“I’LL test him…” she said, putting her hands on her blade. “…if he really is my father’ master, then he’ll easily dodge…THIS!!”

 

She then throws her blade at roshi, who noticed it and went to deviate it…only to eat the blade right on his forehead, falling down with blood pouring down his face. “GUOOOOOOHHHH!!!”

 

“OMG, MASTER, ARE YOU ALRIGHT?” the turtle asked.

 

“I KNEW IT, YOU’RE NOT THE  TURTLE HERMIT!”chi-chi exclaimed.

 

“YOU BITCH! EVEN I CAN’T DODGE SOMETHING LIKE THAT QUICKLY!!” roshi was angry towards chi-chi.

 

“Then  prove to me you are muten roshi!” she asked.

 

“here, look at my driver’s license!” the hermit said, showing it to chi-chi, who then felt guilty.

 

“Oh my! I’m so sorry!” she apologised taking off the blade from roshi’s head. Roshi then put an oversized plaster on his cut. “I tend to jump to conclusions too fast!” chi-chi said cutely. Roshi was visibly having none of it.

 

“ah, wait! I remember where I put the fan!” roshi said.

 

“really? Where is it?” goku asked.

 

“…in the trash can…”

 

“WHAT??” chi-chi shouted.

 

“I was using it to wash the dishes, and it was very dirty, so I threw it in the trash.”

 

“OH NOOO!!” chi-chi started to cry.

 

“But…you said you wanted to extinguish the flames of fire mountain?” roshi asked.

 

“uh-huh!” goku confirmed.

 

“then I can do it myself.”

 

“really?” chi-chi said. “please, hermit! We really want to have oiur castle back!”

 

“it’s alright, little girl! I’ll go with you to fire mountain and put it out myself! Nothing is impossible with muten roshi!”

 

“YAY! both goku and chi-chi said.

 

“…hey, goku’s your name, right? come here for a moment.” Roshi asked goku, making finger motions.

 

“What isit?” goku asked.

 

“y’know? That bulma girl?” roshi said. “when I’m done extinguishing the flames of fire mountain, tell her that I need her for an important task.”

 

“uh…ok!” goku said.

 

“What do you plan on doing, this time?” the turtle asks roshi, aware of his pervy nature.

 

“HEY, CUT IT OUT! At least, let an old man have a taste of heaven before going there!” he said to the turtle.

 

“But you’re immo-“

 

“IT DOESN’T MATTER!” roshi interrupted.

 

“Hey, hermit, how are you gonna follow us home?” chi-chi asks.

 

“Hah, don’t worry! I will ride my turtle to the  mountain! I’ll arrive in no time!” roshi answered. He then jumped on the turtle, then shouted a word in Chinese as the turtle began spiining in place before taking off and flying like a helicopter! Goku and ch-chi then went back to fire mountain, where bulma, oolong and the ox king  were waiting for them.

 

“Father!.” Chi-chi said, hugging gyumao.

 

“So, honey, you found the bashosen?” gyumao asked his daughter.

 

“yes, but the turtle hermit threw it in the trash.” Chi-chi said.

 

“WHAT??” gyumao exclaimed.

 

“Don’t worry, old timer, master roshi is coming to blow off the flames himself!” goku reassured him.

 

“Really? He’s coming right here?” gyumao asked, stupefied.

 

“yeah!” goku answered. “Look, here he is!” he said, pointing at the spinning turtle arriving on the scene, landing in front of the gang, roshi posing confidently…then vomiting all he had in the stomach due to excessive spinning.

 

Meanwhile, yamcha and puar were still hiding behind the same wall, watching it all unfold.

  
“That’s the turtle hermit, the legendary martial arts master?” yamcha wondered, looking at the old man. “I expected someone more intimidating.”

 

“It’s a real pleasure to see you again, master!” gyumao said to the hermit, bowing down.

 

“AH, gyumao! Long time no see!” roshi greeted him. “I heard bad things about you. Apparently, you’ve been killing people to guard your treasure?” e asked him in a disappointed tone.

 

“I’M SO SORRY!” the ox kingwent down on his knees, begging for forgiveness. “I’m willing to give you all my treasure!!”

 

“nonono, it’s alright, just stop killing people!” roshi told him. “now step aside, I’m gonna put out the fire!” he said, as he put his Hawaiian shirt aside. “But before that…hey, kid, the promise!” he said to goku.

 

“oh, right!”  goku said, looking at bulma. “Hey, bulma, roshi wanted to tell you something!”

 

“Uh, what is it?” bulma said, approaching roshi, expecting the worst due to being aware of his perverted nature.

 

“well…after I’m  done with puttingout the fire…can I touch your breasts?”

 

“OMG, Why do you still insist on such an awful proposal??” bulma angrily told him.

 

“Please! If you don’t want to, then I won’t put out the fire!”

 

“ARE YOU SERIOUS?!..” bulma screamed.

 

“Yes! And if I don’t put out the fire, you won’t have the dragon ball, right?” roshi reasoned.

 

“GRR, FINE!!” Bulma answered. “But I don’t believe you can put out the fire! So I will let you touch them AFTER you put it out!””

 

“YAY!” roshi exclaimed.

 

“Fuck you, old dickhead!” bulma said in her head.

 

“ALRIGHT, LET’S PUT OUT DAT HOT FIYAH!” roshi exclaimed, thinking he’s cool cause he saying gangsta lingo.

 

“Do your best, master!” gyumao encouraged him.

 

Roshi got up on a destroyed wall, balanced himself and faced the mountain. He took slow, steady breaths, then put himself in the horse position. He started groaning, making his body shale all over, much to the fascination of everyone. His groan started getting more and more pronounced when suddenly…

 

“HAAAAA!!”

 

With a mighty shout, his muscle swole, transforming him into a massive hulk, to the surprise of everyone. He thenstarts  cupping his hands together.

 

“I KNEW IT!” gyumao exclaimed. “HE’S GONNA DO THE KAMEHAMEHA!”

 

Meanwhile, yamchaand puar were witnessing everything.

 

“Yamcha, what’s a Kamehameha?” puar asked him.

 

“Kamehameha…It’s a technique where the user concentrate all of his ki in one single point, then expel it all at once!” yamcha explained. “I can’t believe I’m gonna see it with my own eyes!” he said, as he watched on with interest.

 

“KA….ME…”

Roshi leans back, turning himself to the right, putting his hand together.

 

“HA…ME…”

 

Suddenly, a burst of light shined brighter and brighter between his palms, forming an energy ball of sorts.

 

“HAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!”

 

Roshi then pushes his palms forward, and a huge wave of light blasted away, engulfing the netire castle and scaring everybody around him. When it was all over, the flames were gone, as well as the castle, completely in ruin. Roshi’s body deflated, becoming skinny again.

 

“AWESOME!!” goku exclaimed.

 

“um…master roshi…” gyuamo called the turtle hermit.

 

“What?” roshi asked.

 

“You…you put out the fire…but you blew up the castle, as well.” He said, pointing at the top of the hill.

  
“Wut?” roshi turned around and saw what he did. “haha, I overdid it a bit!” he said, scratching his head.

 

“Oh no! we’ll never find the dragon ball!” oolong said.

 

“And we don’t ahave a home anymore!” chi-chi cried.

 

“nah, don’t worry, honey!” gyumao assured her. “we’rerich enough to fund a rebuild!”  
  
“r…right!” chi-chi said, smiling.

 

Meanwhile, bulma and oolong were searching for the dragon ball among the rubbles of the destroyed castle.

 

“Hmm, the dragon radar still says it’s here…”bulma whispered, looking or it.

 

Meanwhile, everybody who were still on the ground ere talking with each other. However, yamcha, still behind the wall, cursed to himself. That seemingly weak-looking old man destroyed the treasure!

 

“hey, gramps!” goku asked roshi. “can you teach me the Kamehameha?”

 

“ho ho ho! That’s impossible, I’m afraid!” roshi said. “It took me 50 years to grasp the art of the Kamehameha.”

 

“fifty years, huh…” goku looked at his palms. If the old man did it effortlessly, then surely, he could!”

 

He cupped his hands together and mimicked roshi’s stance, looking at an abandoned car.

 

“Ka…me…ha…me…HAAAAA!!”

 

Upon pushing his hands forward, a small laser came out of them, piercing a hole through the old car. Roshi, gyumao and chi-chi witnessed it, and they were astounded at what they saw, especially roshi, who didn’t think goku would pull it off!.

 

“It worked…but it’s weak compared to master roshi’s…”goku analysed, looking at his palms.

 

“Welp, he’s gohan’s grandson, alright!” gyumao said.

 

 “Indeed…hey, kid, come here!” roshi asked goku.

 

“What is it?” he asked.

 

“You wanted me to train you once you’re done with the dragon balls, right?” he asked, prompting an affirmative response from goku. “Then yeah, I’ll gladly train you! It seems that gohan had a diamond In the rough! Then I’ll gladly polish it!”  


“yippee!!” goku shouted in joy!

 

Yamcha and puar were watching this unfold, the two amazed and terrified of how strong the monkey kid actually was.

 

“T-that kid is amazing!” puar said.

 

“And master roshi will train him…he rarely picks up disciples…can you imagine how strong he would become?” yamcha said, shaking all around in anxiety.

 

“We should forget the drag-“

 

“No puar!” yamcha interrupted. “remember, we cut his tail, and his strength is all gone!”

 

“yeah, but it would be easier said than done!”

 

“Dude, did you see how clueless he can be? We just have to trick him!” he said.

 

“THERE IT IS! Bulma exclaimed, as she found the seven star dragon ball. “Alright, one more to go!”

 

They then went back to the RV. However, roshi stopped bulma.

 

“Um…the promise…” roshi whispered.

 

“Oh, yes!” bulma saiod, faking happiness. “so you did remember, uh?” she said, giggling. “come here, sweety!” she said, motioning the flustered old man to come with her behind the wall. They reached the wall, where they would be all alone.

 

“Ohohoho!” roshi said in anticipation

 

“hmm, are you ready, dear? You wanna do puff puff?” bulma said, as she teasingly put her hands on the top of her red strapless shirt.

 

“OH MY GOD, YES!!” roshi screamed…before getting knocked THE FUCK out by a haymaker from bulma! Goku then went to see what was happeneing when he saw an agry bulma standing in front of a kncked out roshi.

 

“fucking pig!” bulma said to roshi. “I can’t believe someone as perverted as you exist! Y’know what, instead of asking for fucking disgusting shit like this, why don’t you wanna train me, like goku wanted to?”

 

“wait, you really wanna train with me, bulma? Awesome!” goku said.

 

“OF COURSE NOT, DUMBASS!” bulma responded. “and you didn’t see anything, did you?” she asked, embarrassed.

 

“UH, no, what did the hermit wanted?” goku asked.

 

“NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS!” bulma shouted, relieved that goku didn’t see anything. They then grabbed oolong and entered the RV. That’s where chi-chi came up to goku.

 

“Goku…”chi-chi began asking, all shy. “once we’ll get older…would you like to take me as your bride?”  She asked.

 

“Uh? Take you as what?” goku asked, not sure what she was talking about.

 

“Oh,silly… I’m talking about getting married, of course!” chi-chi said, as if goku faked his cluelessness.

 

“uh…sure, ok, we’ll get married!” goku said, not knowing what he was saying.

 

The gang then started the RV and waved goodbye to the ox king, chi-chi and master roshi, and off they go to another adventure, searching for the last dragon ball…with yamcha and puar following them further behind…

 

Meanwhile, in the RV, bulma was driving, with oolong and goku sitting by the window. Goku had a thoughtful look on his face.

 

“Argh, what a day!” oolong yawned. “I’M gonna go to bed. Don’t crash the car on me, bulma!” oolong said to her.

 

“Pff, I’m not as bad a driver as you!” bulma responded back to oolong, who went to bed.

 

When oolong fell asleep, goku then went towards the driver’s seat, sitting on the passenger one besides bulma.

 

“What’s wrong, goku?”bulma asked his little friend upon seeing his thoughtful face. “I saw that you and that chi-chi girl talked together. She seemd to have asked you something.”

 

“bulma…what does getting married mean?” goku asked.

 

“OH…oh my!” bulma was surprised at what goku just asked her. “Is that what she asked you? To marry you?” she asked him.

 

“Well, yeah… but what does that mean? Is it some kinf of food or something?” he wondered.

 

“no, nonono, it’s not food, it’s…” bulma took a deep breath, trying to find the easiest way to explain to goku what marriage is. “…basically, when a man and a woman love each other very, very much, they can decide to live together, spend their entire lives together…”

 

“Huh? Chi-chi wants me to spend my entire life with her?” goku asked.

 

“Yeah, basically…” bulma responded. She doubted this was all concrete. After all, they were just kids. “…if this is what you really want, then sure, go for it! I think you two would make a pretty cute couple!” she said, smiling to goku.

 

“hmm, guess I’ll have to tell her no, then.” Goku reasoned, looking at the passenger’s seat’s window. Bulma looked at him, then put her hand on his thigh.

 

“Hey, if you wanna talk about something, anything, I’m here to listen to you.” She said, giving goku a warm smile.

 

“Yeah, I will!” goku smiled back. “After all, you know a lot more stuff than me!”

 

“and I’m making you less and less dumb everyday!” she said, giving a light punch to goku’s shoulder, with the two laughing it off like they were brother and sister…

 

END OF CHAPTER 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, yeah, chi-chi's outfit in this one is basically a kid-sized version of her chinese dress from the 23rd world martial arts tournament. the reason i'm having wear this is that her original outfit is just way too led for a child to ewear, and i don't support lolis or sexualisation of children.
> 
> also, the entire "puff puff" scene was completely different, as not only i want roshi to get punished for his pervyness, but also showcase bulma's intelligence. also, a foreshadowing of future events :)
> 
> and that last scene with goku and bulma is a reference to the fanfic 'Dragon Ball: Changes" by truedominance. it'S here, on AO3, and a more complete version is available on fanfiction.net. it's one of my inspiration for doing this fanfic, and be sure to go read it, it'S pretty interesting!
> 
> thank you for reading!


	5. The false emperor and the great ape

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As they were looking for the last dragon ball, goku, bulma and oolong are suddenly atttacked by the desert bandit, yamcha! however, unknown to them, a trio of thieves were waiting to strike...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Following is not for profit. it is strictly a fan work meant for personal amusement. Dragon ball, dragon ball z and dragon ball super is property of Akira toriyama, toyotaro, shueisha, Toei animation and shonen jump. please support the official release.
> 
> Some ideas from this fanfic are taken from Lawrence Simpson, AKA: Masakox of teamfourstar fame. check out his what-ifs, they're pretty interesting!

Only one dragon ball remains before son goku, bulma and oolong can summon the sacred dragon shenron! They left the fire mountain with the flames extinguished by master roshi’s Kamehameha, and they are now heading further and further west, leading them to a big forest of tall mushrooms the size of towers. They stopped for refueling at a small town in the forest. Bulma took advantage of it to buy some refreshing sets of clothes: an Arabian-style baggy pants complemented with a strapless white shirt covered by a small blue vest.

 

After refueling, they continued further west, the last dragon ball being in that direction, according to the dragon radar.

 

“Hey, I never bothered asking that, but…”oolong started talking. “…What would you use the dragon balls for?” he asked bulma.

 

“oh, haven’t I told you already?” she said in a girly tone. “I’m wishing for a wonderful boyfriend!”

 

“ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!” olong shouted. “WE’RE PUTTING OUR LIVES ON THE LINE SO YOU CAN GET A FUCKING BOYFRIEND?”  
  
“WATCH YOUR LANGUAGE, PIG!” bulma said. “ kids like you wouldn’t understand!”

 

“I’M AN ADULT…AT LEAST, IN PIG AGE!” oolong shouted. Goku was silent over the entire argument, and while he silently agreed with oolong, he doesn’t want to get into a pointless fight…but then, he saw a car passing by…driven by the desert bandit, yamcha!

 

“L-LOOK OUT!” goku shouted. “THE DESERT GUY IS HERE!”

 

“Really? he’s here?” bulma exclaimed in a girly tone.

 

Yamcha and puar actually caught up with the gang at the village. They didn’t try to steal the dragon balls there, however, as they would have too many witnesses. So they waited until they reached the deepest part of the forest to attack. Yamcha then grabbed a panzer Faust rocket launcher from his seat, and targeted the truck.

 

“Where? Where is he? I wanna see him!” said bulma, acting like a fangirl.

 

“heh heh…HAVE A TASTE OF MY PANZER FAUST!” yamcha shouted as he fired the rocket at the RV, hitting the back of it and making it spin around. The RV then stopped,  unable to move.

 

“Argh, is everyone all right?” oolong asked. He then saw bulma knocked out by the blast and, more surprisingly, goku getting back up, caressing his head in pain.

 

“Ow, that hurts!”goku exclaimed. “I’m gonna teach him a lesson!”  
  


“what the actual…” oolong couldn’t believe it. Many times, goku received shots that would injure or downright kill an ordinary man, and he dusted them off like nothing! “he’s not human!” oolong said to himself as he picked up his personal rifle. He then went outside along with goku, facing a gloating yamcha.

 

“HEY!! WHAT WAS THAT FOR?” goku shouted to yamcha.

 

“Look, yamcha! The girl is unconscious! Now’s our chance!” puar said, looking at the unconscious bulma. Yamcha simply nodded.

 

“Hey, you little shitheads!” yamcha shouted to oolong and goku. “hand over the dragon balls! If you don’t do it nice and quick, you’re in for a world of hurt!”

 

“Huh? How does he know about the dragon balls?” oolong asked goku, not knowing that the monkey boy talked about it to yamcha during their first encounter.

 

“There’s no way we’re giving them to you!” goku responded, sticking his tongue out.

 

“SHUT UO AND GIVE IT TO THEM ALREADY! HE’S GONNA SHOOT US!” oolong ordered goku. However, goku wanted none of it, and charged towards the desert bandit, much to oolong’s horror.

 

“He’S heading towards us!” puar said.

 

“Hold the machine gun for me…”yamcha ordered puar, giving him his Thompson. “…it seems he wants to taste my wolf fang fist again!” he said as he did the wolf fang fist stance again and charged towards goku.

 

“I was hungry the other time, NOW I’M FULLY LOADED!” goku shouted as he blocked yamcha’s first punch. While they werefighting, oolong and puar started a fire fight, puar keeping oolong at bay with his machine gun, while oolong tried to snipe him with his rifle.

 

While this carnage was going on, an unseen witness was looking at it unfolding on top of one of the mushrooms. It was a dark-haired woman wearing an army robe, her cold gaze looking on as the battle raged on. She then grabbed a walkie-talkie from her belt.

 

“shu, are you listening?” the lady said to her talkie-walkie.

 

“Yes, what is it?” a goofy-sounding voicecame out of the speaker.

 

“There’s a skirmish going on near a destroyed RV on your right. Can you see it?” the lady asked.

 

“Yeah, I see it!” the voice said. “ Who are these people?”

 

“They have the dragon balls!” the lady said.

 

Meanwhile, the battle reached a stalemate. Yamcha and goku were breathing heavily, while oolong and puar were out of ammo.

 

“BOOM!!”

 

A rocket exploded outta nowhere, pushing the entire gang, including bulma, away from the RV. Suddenly, a small mech appeared from a mushroom. It was egg-shaped, with 4 small legs for mobility, a claw with a laser in the middle as a right hand and a rocket launcher as a left hand. A fox wearing a ninja suit was piloting it.

 

“W-what’s going on?!” bulma asked, awakened by the explosion.

 

“What is that?” goku asked.

 

“A mech?” yamcha said, as he saw the machine flying to the RV.

 

The mech then picked up the briefcase containg the dragon balls, then flew away from the scene. Bulma and goku tried following it on foot, but he was too far away already for them to do anything.

 

“goku! Your flying cloud!” bulma shouted at the minkey boy.

 

“Right! KINTO’UN!” he called the  cloud, jumped on it and flew away in the mecha’s direction.

 

Goku spend a while searching for the mecha around the big forest of mushrooms. After a coupleof minutes, he finally found it standing in between two mushrooms.

 

Goku lands on the ground and grabs his staff.

 

“HEY! It’s not nice to steal people’s stuff!” goku threatened with nyoibo, not realising that the mecha was actually empty. Unsurprisingly, No response came.

 

“c’mon, say something!” goku said, giving the mecha a light tap of nyoibo, which was enough to make it fall backwards, making goku realise that it was actually another weird vehicle, and that whoever was piloting it left with the dragon ball…

 

Meanwhile, bulma and oolong were stuck with yamcha and puar. Bulma kept sticking her body to yamcha, not knowing the fact that he was afraid of girls.

 

“I’ve been dreaming of seeing you again, darling!” bulma said with hearts in her eyes. “Yourshyness makes you cute!”

 

“H-H-Heh heh…Help me, puar!” yamcha whispered to his feline friend.

 

“Nope, ya gotta learn to be around girls!” puar said, turning his back to bulma.

 

“WHAT? Don’t leave me here with this…this…girl!” yamcha said.

 

“Oh, come on, my prince, I won’t hurt you!” bulma said in a girly tone.

 

“Pathetic…”oolong said, looking at the scene in disgust. “Now where is go-AH, there he is!”

 

Goku arrived empty handed.

 

“Hey goku, you found the guy who stole our dragon balls?” oolong asked.

 

“Nah, he left his weird metal creature and took the balls with him.

 

“WHAT?” bulma shouted, letting go of yamcha. “damn it! I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that other people would look after them. It’s a well-known legend , after all.

 

“Let’s just give up, already!” oolong said. “ it’s useless to risk our lives just to prove a legend true!”  
  
“No way!” bulma stubbornly said.

  
“c’Mon, bulma, I can be your boyfriend!”

 

“AS IF I  WOULD LET YOU!” bulma angrily shouted. “AND I’M NOT A ZOOPHILE!”

 

“uh, bulma, I still have my grandpa’s ball.” Goku said, grabbing the 4-star ball.

 

“HAHAHA!!” bulma laughed proudfully. “THOSE THIEVES FORGOT ONE! SERVES EM RIGHT!”

 

“Uh…don’t you have a weird dragon ball locator in your pocket?” yamcha asked bulma.

 

“Yes! Of course, dear!” she said, giving a wink to yamcha, scaring him shitless. “We can you the dragon radar to catch them! Let’S go!” bulma said, pointing at the direction the mecha went.

 

“Huh, how? Yamcha blew up the RV.” Oolong said.

 

“Y-yeah, sorry!” yamcha said, scratching his head.

 

“it’s alright, dear! I bought capsules back In the vill…OMG, THE CAPSULES WERE IN THE BRIEFCASE!!” bulma said, sobbing comically.

 

“Uh…if you want, we can go catch it together. I can give you a lift.” Yamcha proposed, feeling guilty.

 

“Why would we team up with a guy who wanted to kil-“

 

“That’s a great idea!” bulma interrupted goku by putting her hand on his mouth. “I’d lo- I mean, we’d love to have you give us a lift!”

 

“oh my god, is she serious…” oolong sighed.

 

“Hey, we both got screwed and we both want payback, so why not join forces, as much as I hate the idea of working with you?” puar said to oolong.

 

“I guess we don’t have a choice…” oolong said.

 

While the gang tried to fit in whtever space was left inside of yamcha’s car, another car, a Mercedes-benz MB100, rolled along the mushroom road. The driver was the same lady that spied the gang, with the fox who stole the dragon ball sitting besides her in the passenger’s seat.

 

“That went perfectly, shu.” The lady, whose name was mai, told the fox.

 

“Now lord pilaf will become emperor of the  world, at last!” he gloated, as they went to a huge fortress on top of a pyramid in the distance…

 

Meawhile, the gang finally got inside yamcha’s car, and followed where the dragon radar was leading them.

 

“It’s great that we are working together, right, darling?” bulma told yamcha, leaning on him and making him panic.

 

“what’s his problem?” goku asked.

 

“He is afraid of girls.”puar embarrassingly said.

 

“Really? Why?”

 

“I dunno. Something about childhood trauma or something.” Puar sighed.

 

“AH, pathetic!”oolong said, laughing at him.

 

“you haven’t changed at all, did ya?” puar told oolong.

 

“Poor guy…”goku said.

 

Meanwhile, inside the big fortress on top of the pyramid, shu and mai stood side by side as they were greeted by their boss: a tiny blue-skinned imp wearing regal clothes calling himself emperor pilaf. Upon showing them the dragon balls, pilaf smiled…then immediately went back to his mean look once he found out that there was a missing dragon ball.

“YOU FOOLS!” he shouted, comically hitting shu and mai on the head. “ you should have counted before showing them to me!”

 

“W…we’re sorry, my lord!” mai said.

 

“I thought for sure we had them all!” shu said.

 

Suddenly, the radar on pilaf’s desk started beeping, and pilaf turned to face it, noticing that an orange dot was getting closer and closer to the fortress. Pilaf built himself a dragon radar, complete with satellite, in order to find the dragon balls to grant his wish for world domination, finally becoming an official emperor.

 

“Well, whatever…”he said, looking at the map on the radar. “it seems that the seventh one is coming towards us, anyways. Hihihi, I can’t believe that I would get them all this fast!” he said in an exciting tone. “Finally, the world will be mine!”

 

“Lord pilaf!” mai said, attracting the attention of her master. “They’re here!”

 

“Already?” pilaf asked. .They must have a radar of some sort, too…”

 

Meanwhile, the gang arrived in front of the pyramid. The fortress was heavily fortified on top, and it had an anti-air defense system.

 

“so even if goku would use kinto’un to infiltrate form the air, it wouldn’t work due to all that artillery…”bulma analysed the whole situation.

 

“Then we can enter by the front door!” goku said, pointing at the big metal gate.

 

“no way, kid!” oolong said. the front door is usuallythe most heavily guarded part of the building!”

 

“they don’t look like they are many.” Goku said. “As far as I can tell, that car that is parked near the front door can only fit 4 person.” He said, as he checked inside the car. “ and this pyramid is too small to have many people in there, so yeah, maximum 4 people, which is not enough to guard the whole temple.” He said, calling thepyramid a temple. “And they don’t look like they know how to properly protect something, so yeah, we can go through the front door.”

 

“…Did you just used your head?” bulma asked, astounded at goku actually showing some signs of intelligence.

 

“Yeah, of course.” Goku dully said, as if it was completely normal.

 

“and I know of a way to open the front door: puar can turn into a key that can fit any keyhole!” yamcha revealed, as puar transformed and turned the keyhole tounlock the front door. Expecting the worst, everybody were on their guards…only to find that no one was guarding it!

 

“See, I told you!” goku said, pointing at the entry. “There’s  not enough people to guard the temple!”

 

The gang then stealthily entered by the front door. It was dark, with the only light provided by the light outside entering the hallway.

 

“Keep quiet, everybody.” Yamcha ordered. “We’re not facing any ordinary thieves.”

 

Goku was the point man, going up front so as to scout the area. As he turned the corner, he found an arrow on the ground, pointing forward.

 

“An arrow?” bulma said, seeing the arrow. “But for what?”

 

“there must be something in this direction…” yamcha said

 

“hey, I found another one!” goku said, signaling for the others to come join him. There was then another arrow, then another, then another… the gang followed them, thinking that they will lead them to the dragon balls…only for goku to turn around and come face to face with a brick wall.

 

“Huh, it’s a dead end.” Goku realised.

 

Then, suddenly, another wall appeared on the side, trapping the whole gang! They were then blinded by a light suddenly brightening, blinding them temporarily. When they regained sight, they realised they were stuck between two walls! Those arrows were a trap!  
  


Meanwhile, pilaf, shu and mai looked at their newly-captured prisoners on their monitor.

 

“w…We caught them.” mai said, stupefied that their trap worked.

 

“Oh my god, I can’t believe they fell for such a stupid-ass trap!” pilaf said, laughing at the party’s silliness. “and to think these dumbasses managed to find the dragon balls…geh heh heh, the moment of my crowning as the world’s emperor is getting closer!”

 

“DAMMIT! WE’RE TOTALLY STUCK!” yamcha said, angrily smashing the wall with his fists.

 

“Even my punches aren’t strong enough to break these walls.” Goku said, blowing in his fists in pain.

 

“ that’S why I said to give up the dragon balls!” oolong sighed.

 

Meanwhile, mai and shu came back from looting yamcha’s car.

 

“Lord pilaf.” Mai said. “We didn’t find the dragon ball inside their car.”

 

“What? That means they must be carrying it!” pilaf reasoned, then looked at the monitor showing the trapped party. “Hmm, it doesn’t seem like it, though…”

 

“maybe we can empty that boy’s sack?” mai said, pointing at goku’s little bag actually containing his grandpa’s ball.

 

Pilaf and shu then looked at mai with a “really?” look on their faces. “Did you just make that joke?” pilaf asked.

 

“I’m sorry, pilaf-sama.”she apologised, carrying a stick with poo on its edge.

 

“THAT’S EXACTLY WHAT I’M TALKING ABOUT! I CAN’T BELIEVE THAT YOU MADE SUCH A TASTELESS JOKE!” pilaf shouted, offended by what mai said “now, all the perverts from the internet will come here, thinking that this fanfic is a straight shota lemon, and the writer will be banned from this site for implications of underage lewdness, leaving my conquest for world domination unfinished! I want this fanfic to be as kid-friendly as possible, SO YOU BETTER WATCH YOUR FUCKING MOUTH!!”

 

“yes sire!” mai shouted.

 

“well,yknow what they say…”yamcha began speaking, sitting down on the floor. “…a man’s home is his castle…in a manor of speaking!”

 

Cricket noises were heard.

 

“yamcha…what was that just now?” puar asked him.

 

“…a joke.”

 

“if you’ve got enough time to make lame-ass jokes like that, then you have enough time to come up with a plan!” oolong complained.

 

“THAT WAS A GOOD ONE, SHUT UP!!”

 

Suddenly, a TV Monitor appeared from the roof, descending to face the gang. The screen then activated, revealing emperor pilaf’s face.

 

“hey, is this thing on?” pilaf asked shu and mai, to which they confirmed.”Okay…hello, strangers, I am emperor pilaf!” he greeted the gang with a regal air.

 

“Emperor of what?” bulma asked.

 

“I dunno, never heard of him.” Yamcha answered.

 

“the only pilaf I know is the rice I cook back home!” oolong said.

 

“LISTEN TO ME, DAMMIT!” pilaf shouted. “While it’s true that I am not officially an emperor, with the dragon balls that you generously gave to me, I will become one, soon! And not just any emperor…emperor of the world!!”

 

 

“So you’re the one who stole our dragon balls!” bulma said.

 

“indeed…and it seems that I have only one that is missing…”

 

“well, joke’s on you, asshole!’’ Bulma taunted the imp.  
  
‘’hey, if we break that window, we can get out of here!’’ said goku, pointing at the ‘’window’’.

 

‘’that’s a TV, you moron!’’ yamcha corrected him.

 

‘’I know you have the 4-star dragon ball!’’ pilaf said in a severe tone. ‘’if you don’t giveit right now, you’ll regret it!’’

 

‘’ like we’ll ever give it to you!’’ bulma said, sticking her tongue out, annoying pilaf.

 

‘’All right, then, I’ll just do something obscene to you!’’

 

With that said, a huge claw came out of the roof and grabbed bulma, pulling her inside the control room, where pilaf and his goons were.

 

« w-what do you think you’re doing? Let me go, you thieves!! » bulma shouted, trying to get free.

 

“if you’re going to confess, now’s your chance!” pilaf threatened, ‘where is the  dragon ball?”

 

“Up your ass, that’s where it is!” bulma answered, giving the imp the middle finger.

 

“I  see…you really want to be humiliated… iguess I have no choice!” pilaf said, laughing sinisterly, with bulma expecting the worst. He them lifted his arm…only to perform a blow-away kiss to her. Cricket noises were heard.

 

“What was that?” asks an unimpressed bulma.

 

“well…I just kissed you…”pilaf said, embarrassed.

 

“…yeah, and?”

 

“W-WHAT DO YOU MEAN, “YEAH, AND?”? I JUST DID SOMETHING OBSCENE TO YOU!” pilaf shouted.

 

“You call that obscene?” says a laughing bulma. “boy, you’re late to the party, aren’t ya!”

 

Pilaf was stunned. That woman was even more obscene than him! He was so offended that he immediately sent her back to the party down below.

 

“darn it!”pilaf swore. “to think she survived my perverted attacks.

 

“To be honest, that was pretty lame, sire.” Mai said.

 

“THEN WHAT IS MORE PERVERTED THAN A KIS…ok, on second thought, don’t tell me!” pilaf corrected himself.

 

“uh, my lord…”shu began talking. “…Why didn’t we use sleeping gas on the strangers, then stealthe dragonball in the first place?”

 

“Great idea, shu!” pilaf shouted. “Prepare the gas at once!”

 

Thee smoke was released inside the chamber where the party was trapped. They couldn’t do anything, and they quickly fell asleep. When the smoke settled, pilaf, shu and mai, were right there, standing proudly.

 

“At last, the dragon ball is m…mi…min…”pilaf was about to gloat, but he forgot the one thing that shu and mai didn’t forget: a gas mask! So he fell asleep.

 

“lord pilaf!” shu exclaimed.

 

“I’lllook  for the ball, you  take him back!” mai ordered shu, which he did immediately. mai then checked for the 4-star ball inside goku’s sack, and eventually retrieves it, then leaves for the top  of the fortress, where pilaf and shu were.it was already night, and the moon was full, shining bright like an ominous light. Pilaf woke up, still feeling a bit light-headed, when mai delivered the good news.

 

“Good job,  you two! We’vefinally gathered all seven!” says the blue imp with a happy tone. “When I’ll become emperor, I will make sure, you’ll get adequately paid!”

 

“Yes sir!” both shu and mai said.

 

“hahaha! Finally, the world will be at my feet!”

 

 

Meanwhilw, yamcha and goku tried to punch and kick their way out of the trap unsuccessfuly. bulma was anxious over the entire situation.

 

“Oh no, we’re so screwed!” says bulma. “They probably already made the  wish while we were asleep!”

 

“Hey, Goku!” yamcha called the monkey boy. “Use the kamehameha to break us through!”

 

“How do you know the kameha-“  
  
  


“I just know, okay? Now hurry!” yamcha ordered.

 

Goku then did the Kamehameha on the right wall, and he managed to pierce a small hole through it, revealing the outside world. Yamcha  then checked through the hole, and saw the three thieves with the dragon ball all gathered  in a circle.

 

“They’re outside, and they all gathered the balls, but they didn’t summon the dragon yet!” yamcha said. upon realising that oolong and puar could fit inside the hole, he turned around to face them.

 

“Puar, oolong, we can still steal the dragon balls from them! Get throught the hole and hurry!” yamcha ordered.

 

“YESSIR!” puar said as he flew throught the hole.

 

“What are you standing around for?” bulma asked oolong. “turn into a bat and follow him!”

 

‘okay, okay!” oolong said as he transformed into a bat and followed puar.

 

 

“COME FORTH, SHENRON!! AND MAKE MY WISH COME TRUE!!”

 

With that statement by pilaf, the dragon balls got up in a circle and  spun around at ludicrous speed, producing a blinding light that soon faded and made way for a cracking flash of lightning, and a massive, towering Chinese dragon blasted off to the sky and standing intimidatingly over the entire land, twisting its body in an impossible knot.

 

While pilaf and the gang stood in awe at the sight of shenron, the party were looking through the hole.

 

“This is bad, they summoned the dragon!” yamcha said.

 

“Hey, lemme see!” goku asked, trying to catch a glimpse.

 

“SPEAK TO ME WHAT YOU DESIRE DEEPEST, BUT ONLY ONE, THE ALMIGHTY WILL MANIFEST.” Shenron said with a  deep, Booming voice, reciting the  poem written in the old manuscripts.

 

Meanwhile, the party, except goku, who was amazed by the dragon, were panicking. All the efforts, all the blood, sweat and tears they shed, all of that were  for naught, as the false emperor was about to become master of the world. Pilaf then began telling his wish…

 

“I…I W-WANT…” pilaf was so excited that he couldn’t properly ask for his wish. “I WANT…”

 

 

“THE SEXIEST PAIR OF PANTIES!!!” oolong shouted, completely overtaking pilaf’s voice, and surprising the entire gang of thieves. Even shenron looked at him with stupefaction. Then, from the sky appeared a pair of panties,made by victoria’s secret, falling on oolong’s face.

 

“YOUR WISH HAS BEEN GRANTED…FAREWELL!” the dragon shouted before disappearing in a flash of light. Then, the dragon balls started spinning agai, then balsted of one by one in 7 different directions. All of this under the stupefied eyes of pilaf.

 

Oolong was carrying his panties with pride, whilethe party were celebrating inside their prison.

 

“That crazy bastard, he did it!” yamcha shouted.

 

“Serves em right!” bulma said.

 

“Did ya see that? All the dragon balls flew away!” goku said, worried about his grandpa’s ball.

 

“after a wish is made, all dragon balls are scattered around the world.”

 

“you mean my grandpa’s ball…”goku said, looking sad.

 

“Yes, unfortunately…I’m sorry, goku.” Bulma said, patting goku’s head.

 

“CAPTURE THAT PIG! AND KILL THEM! KILL THEM ALL!!” pilaf angrily ordered shu and mai, being red as a sunburned beach enthusiast, with smoke coming out of his ears. Oolong and puar then came back inside the prison and warned the rest of the party about the threat.

 

“Shit!” yamcha swore. “then we need to find a way outta here fast!”

 

“But what about the dragon balls?” goku asked.

 

“we can’t do anything wth them…” bulma said. “When the balls are used, they are essentialy deactivated. We have to wait for an entire year before using them again.”

 

“O-ONE YEAR??” said yamcha. That news had the effect of a shot through the heart to him, who wanted to get rid of his fear of women.

 

“NICE JOB RUINING MY DREAMS, YOU MAGGOTS!!” pilaf shouted in the microphone. “YOU ARE ALL GOING TO DIE! But don’t worry, I won’t kill you! I’ll just let you stay here, in that prison, so that you can rot and die! HAHAHAHAHAHA!!”

 

That’s it…

 

That’s what the majority of the party thought…

 

All of their dreams…

 

All of their lives…

 

All of this just to die like prisoners on death row…

 

The only one that was remotely positive was goku.but then again, he was more worried about his grandpa’s ball and being hungry than knowing he was going to die. He then noticed puar looking through the hole that he made with the Kamehameha.

 

“What are you doing?” goku asked.

 

“Looking at the moon…” puar answered him. “…The moon is full, tonight, so I want to look at something beautiful before dying.”

 

“The full moon, huh?” goku said, going back to sitting between bulma and yamcha. “when there’s a full moon, a scary monster comes out at night.”  
  
“what, you mean, the wolfman?” bulma asked jokingly.

 

“no, more like a giant gorilla named oozaru.” Goku said, making people laugh. “No, it’s the truth! Grandpa got squashed flat by its foot!”

 

“wait, what?” bulma said, not believing what goku just told. Did he actually remember his grandpa’s death?

 

“son gohan being killed like that?” yamcha couldn’t believe it either. “That giant gorilla must really be something!”

 

“Yeah!” goku shouted. “it destroyed our house, the trees, everything!”

 

Bulma was curious. Does that mean that the house that goku showed her at mount paozu was actually his second home? That he really was living alone all this time?

 

“did you get a good look at that gorilla?” bulma asked him.

 

“Nah, I was asleep, I think?” goku responded.

 

“your house was destroyed, and you still slept through?” oolong asked. “you’re not human!”

 

“grandpa always told me…” goku started speaking, ignoring oolong’s comments. “…to never look at the moon when its full…I don,t think it has anything to do with me looking at it, though.”

 

When goku said that, bulma and yamcha widened their eyes…and started being afraid.

 

They went to the same conclusion…

 

That goku was the giant gorilla, and that he unknowingly killed his own grandpa.

 

“I wonder if monters come out when the moo…hey, what’s wrong?” goku asked the gamg, who was now staying far away from him!

 

“uh, goku…”bulma began asking, shaking all around. “…D-Did you l-l-look at the full moon, when your g—grandpa died?”

 

“yeah!” goku exclaimed, smiling. “Grandpa told me not to, but when I went to pee, I accidentaly looked at it!” he said, terrifying his friends.

 

“No… no way!” yamcha said.

 

“Oh my god, he really is not human!” oolong shouted.

 

“…look at the moon, goku.” Bulma ordered him.

 

“WHAT?!?!” the entire party, minus goku, screamed in unison.

 

“It’s our only chance of escaping!” bulma told them.

  
“B-b-b-b-but if it’s true, aren’t we going to be in trouble?” oolong asked.

 

“There is no other way!” bulma said. “Now look at the moon, goku!”

 

“but grandpa sa-“

 

“IT’S ALRIGHT, GOKU, YOU CAN LOOK AT IT!!” bulma shouted to him, prompting him to look through the hole and look at the round, white star in the sky.

 

Then, he felt a strange sensation in his body…

 

His body hair started growing…

 

He felt pain all over his body…

 

The party was preparing for the worst, as they saw their little monkey boy bowing down in pain, starting to growl like an animal. Then, his limbs started to grow at an immense rate, shattering his gi and the straps of his bag, and his hair started to take over his body as he grew to enormous size, and his teeth turned into fangs, terrifying his friends as the little monkey boy turned into Oozaru, the scary giant gorilla, completely obliterating the roof above them and smashing the entire fortress to pieces as his uncontrollable rage completely takes him over.

 

The gang managed to avoid goku’s massive ape foot, and looked at the sky. “H-HEY, the prison’s broken! We can escape!” yamcha said.

 

“OK, goku, you can turn back now!” bulma said,but her orders fell on deaf ears. The great ape continued its rampage, at one pint tearing off the building surrounding the pilaf gang’s bedrooms, waking them up to the terrifying sight of a giant monkey!

 

“AAAAAHHH, WTF IS THAT?!?!?” the pilaf gang screamd as they jumped out of their beds and went to the hangar, where a plane was waiting. They embraked on the plane and took off immediately.

 

However, oozaru saw the plane flying, and tossed a tower into it, and it managed to hit the plane, and the pilaf gang crashed the damaged plane somewhere in the horizon.

 

The giant ape then tossed another tower at the party, avoiding it by inches…but bulma was stuck inside the rubbles of the thrown tower!

 

Yamcha wanted to save her, but then, he had to face his fear of girls…but then, he remembered goku’s tail!

 

“PUAR, OOLONG, TURN YOURSELVES INTO SCISSORS AND CUT OOZARU’S TAIL!” yamcha ordered, as he summoned his courage and  went to bulma’s rescue.

 

“YESSIR!” puar and oolong said, as they went to confront the big gorilla.

 

“hold on, let me save you!” yamcha said to bulma, trying to lift the broken building.

 

“NO! GO HELP THEM CUT GOKU’S TAIL! I’LL BE ALRIGHT, JUST GO!” bulma told yamcha. After staring at each other’s eyes, yamch then went to confront the ape. He managed to sneak up behind it and grab its tail! However, oozaru felt his power weakening, and started shaking his entire body all around, sending yamcha flying, yet somehow, yamcha held on to the tail!

 

“PUAR!!”

 

“HERE I COME!!” puar shpouted, as he turned into a pair of scissor and cut oozaru’s tail, making the hole of the tail bleed as the giant ape cried in pain and began shrinking down in size. When it became small, it turned into a naked goku, then fell asleep.

 

The gang then breathed heavily, then oolong turned into a mazinger-style mecha and freed bulma form the rubbles. The purple-haired scientist then runned towards yamcha, adnt he two began staring into each other’s eyes.

 

Then shared a fiery kiss, passionately making out, as if they were glad to be alive, disgusting oolong and puar.

 

A while has passed, and the sun began to rise. The group began waking up, except goku, who was a notoriously hard sleeper.

 

“Boy, he really did a number on us, this time!” oolong said, wearing his victoria’s secret panties like a hat.

 

“hey, don’t say that!” yamcha said, smiling. “thanks to goku, we’re free!”

 

“…it’s better not to tell him that he was the one who squashed his grandpa…”bulma said, looking sadly at the serene face of the sleepy goku. These entire events changed bulma’s perspective on the monkey boy. Who would’ve known that such an innocent, happy and gentle little boy had such a dark secret and past, even though he hadn’t had any clue about it.

 

“just what is he, anyways? An alien?” oolong wondered.

 

“Anyways, now that the tail has been cut off, he won’t transform again.” Yamcha said, relieved.

 

Then, goku woke up, only to find himself naked, around his friends, with the forteress in ruin.

 

“Yo!” oolong greeted.

 

“heh heh, what’s up!” goku greeted back.

 

“Heh heh, my ass…” oolong said.

 

“huh? Why am I naked? Where are my clothes?” goku asked, seeing his pee pee, making bulma turn around in embarrassment. To think he almost killed them last night, and now, he’s back to being the clueless goku he knew.

 

“he really doesn’t remember a thing…”yamcha said, baffled.

 

“oolong, give him your panties.” Bulma ordered him.  
  
“HELL NO, THESE PANTIES ARE A PRECIOUS TREAUSRE!” oolong complained, making bulma sigh. “al-alright, I’ll give you my pants, kid!” he said, as he gave goku his suspender pants. Goku filled them up.

  
“You have small legs.” Goku told him.

 

“We’re not that different in size!” oolong told goku. Then, goku fell down.

 

“what’s wrong?” oolong asked.

 

“It’s hard to stand up.” Goku complained.

 

“you must be lacking balance, now that your tail is gone.” Yamcha told him. “don’t worry, you’ll get used to it!”

 

“”wait wha…AAAAHH, MY TAIL IS GONE!!” goku exclaimed as he saw that his tail has disappeared. “…oh well!” he simply shrugged, making his friends fall due to how dumb he was.

 

“you really are carefree, aren’t ya?” oolong said

 

“I don’t need my tail, but where’s my nyoibo?” goku asked.

 

“It’s probably in the ruins of the fortress.” Yacha guessed, to which goku immediately rushed to the rubbles to fin his staff. The gang was now in a pensive mood.

 

“Now what?” oolong asked. “We can’t use the dragon balls for a whole year, so I guess we should go back home?” oolong asked, to which bulma replied positively with a nod, while yamcha woke up puar.

 

Bulma then looked at yamcha, who then stared at her. Bulma thought that she didn’t really need to wish for a boyfriend, cause he already found one righ there, while yamcha realised that,by spending time with bulma, he wasn’t afraid of girls, anymore!

 

Goku then came back, happy to have found his nyoibo. Now all he need to find is his grandpa’s dragonball, and he was about to ask bulma for the dragon radar when he saw bulma and yamcha dancing the tango, not knowing why they were both so happy.

 

“they’re so weird.” He thought.

 

“ah, goku, I need to tell you something!” bulma said. “we all decided to live in west city! Since my family is pretty much the richest family in the world, I’ll buy you all houses, but you can live with me, if you want!” she told goku.

 

“nah, I’m gonna go find my grandpa’s ball, then train with master roshi!” he said.

 

“Oh, right, he promised to train you!” bulma remembered.

 

“is there a lot of hot chicks in west city?” oolong asked.

 

“Yeah, but since you’re a peverted little pig, you won’t be popular with them…”

 

“YOU DON’T HAVE TO SAY IT LIKE THAT!!” oolong shouted at bulma. “fine, I guess I have no choice!”

 

“wait, if you’re really the richest girl in the world…” yamcha said to his new girlfriend “…does that mean you can help me go to college? Cause I always dreamed of being a baseball player, but I heard you need to go to college to become a pro.”

 

“Sure, whatever you want, darling!” she said, kissing him.

 

“really, yamcha? You want to be a baseball player?” goku asked yamcha.

 

“Yeah, it’s been my boyhood dream! You like baseball?” he asked goku.

 

“Of course!” he exclaimed. “grandpa and I practiced pitching, hitting, outfielding and infielding! Everytime I was at bat, I always hitted home runs, so much so that grandpa forbid me of doing them because of how far I sent these balls flying!” goku said, laughing at that last sentence.

 

“with that huge arm strength of yours, I wouldn’t be surprised!” yamcha said.

 

“anyways, once a year passes, are we gonna search the dragon balls again?” goku asked bulma.

 

“Oh, we don’t need the dragon balls anymore…RIIIIGHT?” bulam and yamcha said, looking at each other all lovey-dovey.

 

“oh, right!” goku said, rmemebering his grandpa’s ball. “Bulma, can you give me your dragon radar? I wanna find my grandpa’s ball.”

 

“Sure, thing, kid! here ya go!” bulma said, giving hm her dragon radar. “but remember, the dragon balls will only reactivate after a year passes. Once one year has passed, orange dots will appear on the radar!” bulma explained to goku.

 

“Got it!” goku told his purple-haired friend.

 

“alright, let’s go!” yamcha said, brigning out a capsule from bulma’s case. He threw it in the air, and a 5-seated personal airplane appeared.

 

“Hey, goku!” yamcha called the monkey boy. “wor hard and surpass the turtle hermit! When you finished your training, I wanna face you at the tenkaichi budokai!” he told him.

 

“Tenkaio-what?” goku asked, not knowing what he was talking about.

 

“The tenkaichi budokai!” yamcha exclaimed. “It’s the world martial arts championships! The best of the best all compete there to become the world champion!”

 

“Whoah!” goku was amazed atwhat yamcha just told him. The strongest fighters in the world? All in one place? “Where is the tenkaichi budokai?” he asked, all excited.

 

“It’s on an island, near south city.” Bulma told him. “Once you’re done training, meet us there!” she told him.

 

“ALRIGHT!” goku exclaimed, all pumped up. “See ya at the budokai, then! KINTO’UN!!”

 

The cloud arrived at goku’s position, and he jumped on it. “Take me to the kame house!” he said, before facing his friends, already in the airplane.

 

“take care, goku!” bulma told him. “If you want, you can come visit me! I live in west city, in a big, egg-shaped house with a big C on the roof!” she explicitly told him, so that he can have an easier time remembering it.

 

“Sure, I’ll come visit you once I’m done training!” goku promised. “And take care, too, bulma!” he said, waving good bye to his friends as they went their separate way. As he flew away with kinto’un, goku realised how big the world actually is, and how he’s lucky to have met so many people, including a wonderful friend in the purple-haired girl bulma!

 

“it’s so much fun!” he said to himself, as he blasted off to the horizon, looking for new adventures…

 

Meanwhile, pilaf, shu and mai were walking along the mushroom forest, all tired and weary.

 

“why…oh why…”pilaf mourned, as he had to wait for another year before becoming emperor.

 

“I’m…so…tired…”mai said.

 

“ can’t we just…go to an hotel or something, my lord?”shu asked.

 

“OH HELL NO!!” the imp shouted. “ THIS IS PUNISHMENT FOR YOUR OWN INCOMPETENCE AT NOT STOPPING THESE DAMN FOOLS FROM RUINING MY DREAMS!!”

 

“YOU ACCUSE US OF SOMEHTING WE’RE NOT GUILTY OF??” mai shouted back. “That’s it, I’m leaving! We’re not even paid enough for this shit!” she said, leaving.

 

“yeah, I’m going with her!” shouted an angry shu.

 

“NO!! please, come back!” pilaf begged. “You guys are my best servants!”

 

“you mean, your only servants!” mai shouted. “If you paid us from the beginning, we’d gladly stay with you, still risking our asses in the name of the great emperor pilaf…but you never did, and I’m sick and tired of this bullshit!”

 

“I HATE YOU ALL!!” pilaf screamed, stomping the ground in frustration…making a strange object fall from a hole in one of the mushrooms.

 

Curious at what fell down, the trio checked on the object. It was a white rice cooker with a Buddhist demon exorcism sealing paper attached to it.

 

“What is a rice cooker doing inside that mushroom?” mai asked.

 

“maybe it contains a treasure!”pilaf said, thinking that he can be rich by selling the treasure and finally pay mai and shu their missing wages, reconciling with them. He tried opening it, but it was sealed tight.

 

“Don’t just stand there, help me!” he ordered his two goons, and they did so, mai pulling onn the cover while shu used his ninjato as a can opener, and then with their combined strength, they managed to open it…only to be taken aback by a huge wave of energy blasting out of the rice cooker!

 

The huge, green energy wave spiraled out of control, cutting down any and all mushroom that stood in it way. This chaotic spiral scared the  trio, who then collectively shat their pants when the energy wave began taking an imposing shape, with crimson eyes as threatening as its ever growing shadow completely engulfed the trio. Then, a deep, demonic voice came out of the shape. At first, it was laughing madly, then suddenly, was heard saying…

 

“FREE…AT LAST!”

 

END OF CHAPTER 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> and thus, the first arc has ended. i hope you enjoyed reading it as much as i did writing it, and i hope you're excited for the budokai! i'll give you a warnign that will serve as a minor spoiler, though: lunch will not exist in this story. cause she brings absolutely nothing to the table storywise, and because i have an alternative that can make the tournament arc much more interesting, IMO.
> 
> also, the reason why i have goku love baseball is simply because of my own love for baseball. me and my family loves this sport, and i thought it would make sense that grandpa gohan would play it with goku as a family activity. plus, in DBZ, we have scenes where goku's family play baseball at one point or another, so i thought it would make sense that goku not only loves baseball, but transmit that love to his kids, as well.


	6. The way of the turtle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Goku finally found master roshi, so that he can begin his training for the tenkaichi budokai. however, anew rival, krillin the shaolin monk appears, and to be trained by the turtle hermit, he must bring a pretty girl! goku concocted a plan, a plan that invloves a certain purple-haired scientist...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Following is not for profit. it is strictly a fan work meant for personal amusement. Dragon ball, dragon ball z and dragon ball super is property of Akira toriyama, toyotaro, shueisha, Toei animation and shonen jump. please support the official release.
> 
> Some ideas from this fanfic are taken from Lawrence Simpson, AKA: Masakox of teamfourstar fame. check out his what-ifs, they're pretty interesting!

 

over the hills of mount paozu, a flying cloud was passing by. It was kinto’un, the supersonic cloud that used to belong to muten roshi, the turtle hermit. However, roshi gave it to son goku, the grandson of his former student son gohan, as thanks for rescuing his pet turtle. Goku was coming off of a visit to the house he lived for almost his entire life, before a girl named bulma brought him on a voyage to find the dragon balls, a voyage where he met the hermit. After he spent a while cleaning the dust from inside his house, he left on kinto’un with some food, blankets and clothes and went to find the kame house, home of master roshi.

 

After some periods of travelling, he finally found kame house, standing on the remote island that master roshi called home. He landed on the small beach of the island, carrying his clothes, food and blankets.

 

“Hey, master  roshi, I’m here!” goku shouted at the front door. No one answered.

 

Goku then dropped his stuff an went to the window to check if the hermit was home. He then heard some funky, up-beat music coming from the window. He grabbed the edge of the window and checked inside the house.

 

It was well decorated, with a carpet on the floor, a bookshelf and a big tv screen nearthe wall. The turtle hermit was completely fixated to the screen. Goku jumped inside the house to see what he was watching.

 

“lift those legs, ladies! Two! Three! four!” a woman with puffy blonde hair, two red fluffy wristband, red leg warmers an a red leotard was on her side, repeatedly lifting her right leg while counting. Behind here were two other women, one with blue short hair wearing a black high cut leotard, another with her black hair tied in a ponytail wearing a yellow leotard, doing the same thing as the lead girl. Seeing that these girls had muscular legs like bulma, this must be that “Aerobics” training she talked about back when they first met. He wondered why was roshi watching  these girls train inside that TV?

 

“Yeah, 1-2-3-4, heh heh…” roshi said, drool coming from his mouth.

 

“master roshi!” goku tried calling him, but he didn’t listen. Goku then approached him so that he faced his ear, took a deep inhale and…

 

“MASTER ROSHIIIIIIIII!!!!”

 

Goku’s mighty scream made the hermit fall on the side, finally putting his attention to goku.

 

“Oh…It’s you.” He said, still shook by that scream.

 

“I’m here to train, like you promised me!” goku said.

 

“Not now, not now!” roshi said, looking at the TV again. “I’m doing my morning workout.” He said, resuming drooling.

 

“Squeeze those buns! two! Three! Four!” the lady in the red leotard said as the girls were now working on their peach-shaped buttocks with donkey kicks. Goku didn’t think that this kind of training was effective to make someone stronger. He thought that bulma should be better off doing actual martial arts training…then, his stomach gargled.

 

“I’m hugry.” Goku said.

 

“The fridge is over there!” roshi said, pointing to the kitchen while still fixated on the girls’s butts. Goku then opened the fridge and awas salivating with how much food there was!

 

“Thanks for working out with us! See you tomorrow!” the red leotard-clad blondie said as the three girls waved goodbye at the camera, making the end credits appear. After then end credits, an ad from the tenkaichi budokai played

 

Master roshi then turned off the TV and stretched out his limbs. “the tenkaichi budokai is coming soon. Better start training!” he said, going to the kitchen. “now where did that boy goAAAAHHH!!”

 

Roshi couldn’t believe what he saw! Goku was lying there with a swollen belly, the fridge behind him completely empty!

 

“Y-y-you ate everything? Even the butter?” roshi asked. “these groceries were supposed to last a week!”

 

“i…I was hungry.” Said a satisfied goku, touching his belly.

 

“Oh, bother…so, you done searching for the dragon balls?” roshi asked.

 

“Yup!” goku shouted, his stomach now small again, which surprised roshi. “and I’ve come to train with you, like you promised me!”

 

“indeed, I did!” roshi said.

 

“and don’t worry, I brought food!”goku said, pinting at the stash of wild catches he brought with him.

 

“uh, yeah…” roshi said, awkwardly staringat the wild animals that goku killed. He then looked around the island. “Hey, isn’t the big-chested girl here?”

 

“you mean bulma?” goku asked him, which roshi confirmed. “Nah, she came back to west city after we were done with the dragon balls.”

 

“ah, that’s a shame.” Roshi sighed. “I must warn you, first, goku! My training’s REALLLLY tough!”

 

“I don’t mind!” goku responded. “ I want to be stronger than you, gramps!”

 

“ HOHOHOHO! Stronger than me, eh?” roshi said.

 

“ Yup! And I want to beat yamcha  at the tenkaichi budokai!” goku said.

 

“oh, so you wanna compete at the tournament, eh?” roshi asked, not knowing who this “yamcha” was. “Alright, I’ll train you! However, my training does not come for free!” he said.

 

“Huh?”  goku said.

 

“I want you to bring me a pretty girl!” roshi ordered goku. “only when you bring me one that I will start training you.”

 

“okay!” goku said. he immediately remembered that, back at the fire mountain, bulma asked master roshi to train her, meaning that she was interested…at least, that’s what goku understood, he couldn’t remember it properly. However, bulma was pretty, and goku would have more funtraining if he did it with a friend.

 

so he went back to kinto’un and was about to take off when master roshi stopped him.

 

“I hope you  understand what I mean by pretty girl.” He said.

 

“it’s alright, I already have someone in mind!” goku assured him.

 

“Ok, good, but still, just to make sure…”roshi said. “…being pretty just isn’t enough! She must not look too much like a kid, nor like a grandma. She’s gotta be pretty cute and pretty…plump…yeah, plump!”

 

“…this is complicated.” goku complained. He thought that bulma wasn’t plump like a pig…well, her chest and butt were, but not her entire body. She was too small to be considered plump.

 

“But hey, you said you already know who to bring, so yeah, good!” roshi assured him.

 

“Yup! I know exactly who to bring!” goku said, looking at the sea…where he saw a small boat coming to the island. “Hey, master, something’s coming our way!” he said, pointing at the boat.

 

Onboard the small, makeshift boat was a boy the size of goku. He was bald, had 6 dots on his forehead, and was wearing kung fu robes. No doubt about it, it was a young shaolin monk. Once he was ashore, he jumped towards roshi and goku, making a front flip and landing perfectly, prompting applause from the old man and the monkey boy.

 

“you are the turtle hermit, muten roshi, right?” the shaolin mink said.

 

“Indeed! And you are?”

 

“My name is krillin! I’m from the shaolin temple in the east!” the monk introduced himself. “and I’ve come to train under you.”

 

“Hmm, the shaolin temple is one of the best schools in martial arts.” Says roshi. “why do you want to be trained by me?”

 

“Well, to tell you the truth, I left the temple…” krillin scratched his head. “…I found their classes boring, it was mostly philosophy. Since I don’t think I’ll get stronger by reading books, I want a more hands-on approach, so I left in search for you, and now, here I am!”

 

“hmm, philosophy is important for any martial artist.” Roshi said. “But I understand, I used to be a shaolin monk myself, and, just like you, I left because it was too boring. But I’m sorry, kid, I’m not taking anymore disciples.”

 

“please, hermit…” krillin said, pulling out a dirty magazine from his backpack. “let me be your student!”

 

“why you sneaky little…OK, welcome to the turtle school!” roshi said, taking the dirty magazine.

 

“YAY!” krillin shouted.  “By the way…”he turned around to face  goku. “…who are you? His disciple?”

 

“Yup!, I’m son goku!”

 

“never thought you were a martial artist.” Krillin said.

 

“I like martial arts!” goku exclaimed.

 

“is that a joke?” krillin asked cockily. “Martial artists shave their heads to show their dedication and brace their spirits! Look at the turtle hermit!”

 

“actually, I’m just bald.” Roshi said, shutting up krillin. “say, krillin, why don’t you team up with goku to find a pretty girl? That is my condition for accepting students.”

 

“Piece of cake!” krillin said, turning around to face goku, looking at him with a cold stare…until he noticed the cloud underneath goku.

 

“…You can ride on clouds?” he asked.

 

“Only this one!” goku said. “You can ride it, too, if you’re pure of heart.”

 

“ I see.” Krillin says as he jumps…then falls through the cloud!

 

“wh-what?” krillin said, confused.

 

“Did you come here to train with impure intentions?” roshi asked krillin.

  
“N-NO!” krillin said. “I WANT TO BE STRONGER TO BEAT THE PEOPLE WHO BULLIED ME AND MAKE PEOPLE THINK I’M COOL, ESPECIALLY GIRLS!”

 

“these are impure thoughts, boy.” Roshi says.

 

“Look who’s talking.” Says the turtle.

 

“I HEARD THAT, TURTLE!” roshi shouted.

 

“well,you can grab onto me.” Goku told krillin.

 

“Y-yeah, that would be a good solution.” Krillin said, as he grabbed on to goku as the cloud then flew away to the sky, in search of bulma.

 

“hey, krillin, do you know where west city is?” goku asked.

 

“yeah, it’s past the canyons.”krillin said. “Why’s that? You know a girl there?”

 

“Yeah, my friend bulma lives there!” goku said. “She wanted to train with master roshi, too!”

 

“HA! A girl training in martial arts? That’s funny!” krillin said.

 

“why so?” goku asked.

 

“Girls aren’t meant to engage in conflict!” krillin said. “We need them to keep the human race from disappearing from the face of the earth.”

 

Not understanding krillin’s opinion, goku simply chose to ignore what he said. “Bulma is supposed to live in west city, in a huge, egg-shaped house with a big C on the roof.” Goku told krillin, remembering what her purple-haired friend told him.

 

“Wait, a big C…WAIT, YOU’RE FRIENDS WITH BULMA BRIEFS?” Krillin asked goku in a surprised tone.

 

“you know her?” goku asked him.

 

“Of course!” krillin exclaimed. “She is the daughter of Dr. Briefs, the most important scientist in the world! He invented the capsules!”

 

“Really? I thought it was bulma…” goku said.

 

“Well, she did, too, helping her father in his research and work. I csn’t believe you’re friends with such a hot girl!”

 

“She has a hot temper, alright!” said goku, remembering the times she shot him in the face.

 

“and the house with the big C is the capsule corp. building!” said krillin. “I know where it is, just follow m-HEY, THERE IT IS!!”krillin said, pointing the big Blue C on the roof of the capsule corp. headquarters. The cloud landed in front of the front door.

 

“But why would bulma briefs learn martial arts?” krillin whispered to himself.

 

“Maybe because she wants to be stronger.” Goku guessed. “I mean, she almost did die when we searched the dragon balls.”

 

“wait, you chased the dragon balls together?” krillin asked goku.

 

“Yeah, it was fun! We met many people, including master roshi, and we even saw the dragon!” goku told his bald rival.

 

“shenron??” krillin shouted in surprise. “you mean, the legend is true?”

 

“yup!” goku answered.

 

“no way…that’s not fair!” krillin said. “now you’ve made me jealous! I am even more motivated to perform better than you during training!” he said with jealousy.

 

“Okay!” goku said, shrugging it off.

 

“Is this guy for real? I just challenged him and he shrugs me!” krillin thought.

 

The two boys entered the capsule corp building, goku amazed at the doors automatically opening in front of them, and even more amazed at seeing the hi-tech interior. He was looking everywhere, looking at the monitors, the machinery, the vastness of the labs, everythingit’s as if he stepped into a different world.

 

“will you stop acting weird?” krillin asked goku.

 

“this is the first time I’ve seen bulma’s home!” goku said. “I never thought it was so big!”

 

“OH?” shouted a very feminine, high-pitched voice, which belonged to a woman in his late 30s-early 40s with puffy blonde hair shaped like a pompadour. “DID I HEAR YOU LITTLE BOYS MENTION MY BEAUTIFUL DAUGHTER BULMA?”

 

“yeah,  where is she?” goku asked.

 

“introduce yourself first,you dimwit!” krillin said,  hitting goku on the head. “Sorry, ma’am, my name is krillin. This here is son goku.”

 

“Son goku?” the woman said. “The same boy that accompanied my dear bulma in her dangerous voyage?”

 

“Yes!” goku confirmed.

 

“OMG, YOU’RE SUCH A CUTIE!” the woman said, pinching goku’s cheeks. “my name is panchi, I am bulma’s mother! She is working with her father in the lab, I’ll call her right away!” she said, turning around and going to the labs.

 

“Ow, what powerful technique!” goku said, caressing his cheeks.

 

“…she just pinched you…” krillin dully said.

 

“Yeah, but that hurts!” goku complained.

 

“Oh, silly me, I forgot to tell you!” bulma’s mom said, going back to the boys. “If you are hungry, you can wait in the kitchen! There’s a lot of food in the fridge!”

 

“thanks! I’m hungry.” Goku said.

 

“Yeah, I can take a little something…”krillin said.

 

The two then went to the kitchen to feed themselves…well, krilling didn’t took much, as goku emptied the fridge. Krillin couldn’t believe how voracious goku’s appetite was, to the point of being intimidated.

 

“Goku? You’re really here?” bulma’S voice shouted in the corridor. Bulma and her mom entered the kitchen only to be horrified to see the fridge completely emptied.

 

“hey, bulma!” goku greeted her, as if nothing happened.

 

“Y-YOU EMPTIED THE FRIDGE!!” bulma shouted.

 

“huh? Oops, my bad, I was too hungry, hahaha!” goku said.  


 

“woah, she’s pretty cute!” krillin thought upon seeing bulma.

 

“OH MY!” panchi said. “who knew that cute lil monkey boy had such a big appetite! Don’t worry, I’ll go buy some groceries!” panchi left the building.  
  
“…So, how’s it going?” bulma asked goku. “Who is that?” she asked him again, upon seeing krillin.

 

“I’m krillin, student of master roshi.” Krilling introduced himself.

 

“Oh, right, you’re training with roshi!” bulma said to goku. “ so, how’s it going?”  


“we haven’t started yet.” Goku said. “master roshi told me that we should bring him a pretty girl before our training starts.”

 

“why am I not surprised.” Bulma sighed.

 

“…And since you showed interest in training, I’m bringing you with us!”  


“YOU WHAT??” bulma shouted. She wasn’t expecting this.

 

“Well, you did wanted master roshi to train, right?”

 

“Goku, that was a joke!” bulma said.  “I can’t believe you remember what I said at the fire mountain!”

 

“wait, you went to fire mountain?” krillin asked goku.

 

“yup!” goku responded. “but bulma, we won’t be accepted by roshi if we don’t bring you with us! Plus, you almost died when we searched for the dragon balls. Don’t you wanna be stronger, so that, if we search the dragon balls again, you won’t be in any danger?”

 

When goku told her all of that, she began thinking about all of this. Such a scummy tactic, as expected from muten roshi, and goku completely misinterpreteted what she said at fire mountain, not helped by the fact that she never told him why roshi really wanted to be alone with her…but, on the other hand, him wanting her to train in the martial arts so that she can defend herself makes sense. Her search for the dragon balls was a lot more dangerous than she expected. If she at least learned martial arts, she would be able to fend off anybody who wants to hurt her…or making advances on her, like roshi…

 

“okay…”bulma sighed. “…I guess what you’re saying makes sense…I can’t believe I just say that about YOU!”

 

“so you wanna train with us?” goku asked bulma.

 

“Yeah, I will.” She confirmed.

 

“YAHOO!” both goku and krillin jumped in joy. “we’re gonna have much fun together, bulma!” goku told bulma.

 

“Yeah, lots of fun…”bulma said sarcastically. “…but wait here, I’m gonna change and pack my things...” She said, going to her room to take off her scientist gear and wear something more comfortable. After a while, she returned to the boys, wearing a blue tank top with white shorts, and she carried two huge bags.

 

“oh my, I can’t believe my baby is going on a trip, again!” panchi said, hugging her daughter and giving her kisses. “She really has become an independent woman!”

 

“mom! I’m gonna be alright! How embarrassing…”

 

“oh, dear, never forget that I’m your mother, I will always worry about you!” panchi told her daughter. “you are in good hands with this goku boy, you should be lucky to have such a wonderful boyfriend!”

 

“He’s not my boyfriend!” bulma blushed. “Yamcha’s my boyfriend!”

 

“Oh, right! Silly me!” panchi said in a ditzy tone.

 

“hey, speaking of which, where’s yamcha?” goku asked.

 

“He’s in college, playing baseball.”

 

“Awesome!” goku said, happy that yamcha is following his dream. “Is he training for the budokai, too?”

 

“Yeah, he’s training for that, as well.” Bulma answered.

 

“Cool!” we’re all gonna be ready for the budokai!” goku said,

 

“Uh, no, not me!” bulma said.

 

With that said, bulma summoned the same plane he used to bring  everyone to west city back when they left goku at the mushroom forest. After she took off, she relied on goku and krillin to guide her to kame house. Once they arrived there, master roshi was waiting for them. He was surprised to see bulma come out of the plane.

 

“HOHOHO! You brought bulma with you!” roshi said to goku, eyeing bulma. “Excellent cho-“ he then received one  of bulma’s huge bags right in the face!

 

“Don’t get any ideas, old fart!” bulma shouted, putting her feet on roshi’s face. “I’m not here totake part in your sick, perverted games! I’m here to learn martial arts!” she boldly said.

 

“Huh? Y-you’re actually serious?” roshi asked

 

“i’m dead serious!” bulma exclaimed. “now let”s start this training, no time to waste!”

 

“wo-woah-woah, I have to warn ya first!” roshi told bulma. “My training is not for the faint hearted. It’s gonna test your physical endurance. Are you sure you’re ready for this?”

 

“I survived wild beasts, a beautiful desert bandit and a megalomaniac gang of thieves, fire mountain and a giant ape almost squashed me. And I got the feeling that a certain monkey boy will lead me to my death if I don’t learn martial arts! So Yeah, I think I’m ready! Bulma said, smiling. That last sentence confused everyone, including goku.

 

“alright, then, but don’t say I didn’t warn ya!” roshi told bulma. He then entered his house, then exited with a briefcase containing two orange gis with a circle containing the sign “kami”, meaning god. The same sign was also on the back of the shirt.

 

“cool! What’s that?” goku asked.

 

“it’s the turtle school’s uniform.”roshi answered. “you are now officially under my wings, just like your grandfather before you.”

 

“do I get a uniform too?” bulma asked.

 

“oh, yes, I have one specially made for you!” roshi said, before entering his house…only to come back with an aerobics leotard. After receiving yet another bag in the face, he gave up and eventually gave her another turtle school uniform.  
  
“Hmm, not the most flattering of outfits, but comfortable.” Bulma thought to herself.

 

“So, when are we gonna start, master?” goku asks.

 

As if in response, the  turtle hermit popped a speedboat out of a capsule, and invited everyone in. as soon as everyone got in, the  hermit pressed on the gas and off they go, to the nearest archipelago!

 

They arrived at an island that had small villages around and a volcano at the top of a forest.

 

“Alright, goku and krilin, you got experience in martial arts, while you, bulma, you don’t have any…”roshi told  the trio. “…however, you, bulma, showed enough character and determination that I have allowed you to train with the others.”

 

“Now, the first training…” roshi then pointed at a tree. “there is approximately 100m between that rock here and that tree over there. What I want you to do is, quite simply, a 100m dash! Krilin, you’re up  first!”

 

“heh heh, I have legs that can compete in the Olympics!” he boasted as he put himself in position.

 

“ready…set…GO!!”

 

Krilin blasted off, sprinting like he was usain bolt, easily crossing the finish line.

 

“10.5 Sceonds!” roshi shouted. “Impressive!”

 

“meh, my personal best is ten flat!” krillin said

 

“now, it’s goku’s turn!” roshi said.

 

“Yosh!” goku shouted, as he stood still.

 

“Pff, what is that stance!” krillin thought to himself.

 

“ready…set…GO!!”

 

Goku also had a great run, crossing the finish line with equal speed to krillin.

 

“11 seconds!” roshi shouted. “you didn’t beat krillin’s time, but you were still pretty darn fast!”

 

“heh heh!” goku laughed, but stopped when krilling was looking at him coldly.

 

“and last but not least, bulma!” roshi said.

 

Bulma felt a bit nervous. She didn’t know how fast her commpetitors were! She knew that, physically, she would be severly outmatched by goku and krillin.

 

“what’s wrong, you sacred or something?” krillin asked bulma childishly.

 

“C’mon, bulma, you can do it!” goku cheered her on.

 

Bulma then took a deep breath. They were kids! There is no way  the beautiful and smart bulma briefs is gonna get pushed around by kids! She survived countless dangers on her search for the dragon balls, this is nothing compared to what she’s been through!

 

She put herself in position.

 

“ready…set…GO!”

 

At the signal, bulma pushed with all of her heart, goku cheering her on the side, while krillin actually started to look worried. The girl was actually going faster than he thought! She can actually be equal to goku…or even him! She crosses the finish line…

 

“11,8 seconds! Woah, impressive! Almost as fast as goku!”

 

Krillin was dumbfounded, while goku congratulated bulma…who was lying dead on the grass, breathing heavily.

 

“yessir, bulma! You were fast!”

 

“y…yeah…”was the only thing bulma said before returning to breathing heavily. Goku helped her get up, then krillin laughed nervously.

 

“HAHA! You’re tired, after only 100m? that’s jogging to me!” krillin said nervously.

 

“You better watch your mouth in front of your elders, kid!” bulma responded.

 

“Not in front of a girl!” krillin said, sticking his  tongue out.

 

Bulma was annoyed, but she knew she really shouldn’t be. After all, they were just childish insults. It’s normal for young boys to be really competitive. They especially don’t want to be beaten by a girl.

They spent  the rest of the day running the 100m. while bulma only improved her time by the milliseconds, roshi realised how much effort and determination she put in her performances. “she may not be a natural, but she’s tough! She can go somewhere!” he thought.

 

Krillin  kept improving until he managed to reach the finishe line in 9 seconds! He thought it was gonna be unbeatable…until goku THRASHES his record with a lightning-fast 8.5, 1.5 seconds faster than krillin!

 

“W-WHAT KIND OF TRAINING DID YOU TAKE?” both krillin and bulma said at the  same time.

 

“I run a lot in the woods!” goku responded, baffling his friends even more!

 

“hmm, very impressive, all of you!” master roshi said.”however, you merely are at human level!”

 

“huh? W-what do you mean?” bulma asked nervously.

 

“All I’M saying is that, if ya wanna reach a higher level and perfect the mastery of martial arts, you must overcome your limits!”  
  
“overcome my limits?” bulma thought, as krillin and goku silently listened. “I already overcame my limits by running like a maniac, what does he want me to do?”

 

Krillin,, keep time for me, please!” roshi tiold the bald monk, as he put himself behind the start line.

 

“ready…set…GO!””

 

With only one bounce, master roshi crossed the finish line in olny 5.6 SECONDS!

 

“No way!” everybody thought, including bulma. “It’s as if he flew!” bulma thought.

 

“hmm, not bad, for a first time run in six month!” roshi said.

 

“W-what was that?” bulma asked roshi.

 

“That’s what it means to surpass his own limits!” roshi said to his stunned students. “since you have  your lives ahead of  you, you should keep on training, and you too can do the 100m in 5 seconds!”

 

“yeah, I’ll keep on training!” goku said.

 

“I’m not gonna get left behind!” krillin exclaimed.

 

“…but it’s impossible!” bulma said, discouraged.

 

“And what exactly is impossible?” roshi asked bulma.

 

“well, don’t you see the gap between me and the others?” bulma asked rhetorically. “I mean, krillin’s a former shaolin monk, and goku learned martial arts from his grandpa and is also a freak of nature, so nodoubt they’ll be faster than light! Me? I’M just a scientist and a teenage girl who’s only physical activity she does is testing inventions and my aerobics tapes! What I’ve been through made me realise how weak and unprepared I am for facing such dangers! I thought I would learn martial arts from you so that I can defend myself and build my confidence. But now, after seeing what you, krillin and goku can do, my motivation is in the toilet!” she started to cry.

 

“look at you…” said roshi, attracting bulma’s attention. “crying and cursing your supposed “weakness”, when really, you are comparing yourself with others. A typical flaw of teenage people, girls, especially…”

 

“w-wha?” bulma wondered where he was going  with this.

 

“…tell me, bulma, have you ever abandoned something? a project?” he asked him.

 

“…where are you going wit-“

 

“Tell me. An honest answere, please!” roshi interrupted.

 

“No, she didn’t!” goku said. “I know that, because I remember her saying to our friend, oolong, that she almost died experimenting with acid, and that  she  was willing to die to accomplish her goals!”

 

“goku…” bulma said, speechless.

 

“Is that so?” roshi asked bulma.

 

“y-yeah…” bulma confirmed.

 

“it seems that boy is more aware of your qualitites than you are!” roshi said.

 

“Pff, what are ya talking about? We only knew each other since he smashed my car when I met him! he didn’t even knew what a girl was!” bulma said.

 

“that boy can be naïve, yes…” roshi admitted. “…but he’s much smarter than you think! Just by being with you for a short amount of time, he managed to find out your biggest quality! Beyond the knowledge and intelligence that you gained as a scientist, you are incredibly determined! You are willing to die to finish what you started, and you’re willing to push yourself for you and the ones you love! All of you have that quality! You may be years behind those two, but you give as much, if not more effort than any of these lads, just to survive my training, which is quite an achievement in and of itself! Always push yourself to the limit, in order to surpass them, and become harder, better, faster, stronger! Repeat after me!” he told krillin.

 

“Harder, better, faster, stronger!”

 

“goku?”  


“Harder, better, faster , stronger!”

 

“and, finally, you, bulma!”

 

“Harder…better…”  


“I can’t hear you!”

 

“…faster…stronger!”  


“what?”

 

“Harder, better, faster, stronger!”

 

“What?”

 

“harder, better, faster, stronger!”

 

“I CAN’T HEAR YOU! YOU SAY WHAT?”

 

“HARDER, BETTER, FASTER, STRONGER!”

 

“EVERYBODY SAY…”

 

“HARDER! BETTER! FASTER! STRONGER!” the trio said in unison.

 

“THAT! Is the way…of the turtle!”

 

Everybody felt pumped, including bulma. She looked at goku and krillin repeating the turtle school’s motto with a smile. It doesn’t matter if she isn’t on the same level as goku or krillin, she only needed to surivive master roshi’s training. That is how she is going to surpass her limits. In some way, she began understanding why goku loves martial arts so much. It really is a good way to surpass oneself, both physically and mentally.

 

“now, you better prepare yourselves, cause the rest of the training is gonna be hell!” roshi said, making everyone nervous.

 

And indeed, the rest of the training was hell: therest of the challenges included searching for a stone in the middle of the jungle, facing villagers, wild animals and jumping on trees along the way. Bulma manage to find the stone first, using her intelligence and sense of analysis to find it. Krillin, not wanting to get beaten by a girl, tried to steal it and flee to master roshi, but goku managed to catch up to him, and pinned him down. Krilling tried to give him a fake rock, but bulma recognised that the rock had poorly-written writings on it compared to the impeccable writing on the real one, outsmarting krillin and making him enraged. Roshi tried convincing bulma to spend the night with her, only to be met with a fist to the face. bulma went to eat with goku and krillin instead.

 

The next step was milk delivery. But  not any kind of milk delivery: milk delivery across sinuous terrain, zig-zagging on the road, and climbing the massive 100 steps of the mantis temple to deliver the order to the temple’s grand master. Everybody were really tired, but they were smiling: they were enjoying this! Even bulma surprised herself with how much she was enjoying it!

 

Up next was training one’s balance on a tree bridge, while holding the milk boxes. They managed to do it, despite several close-calls. And then, the whole thing about learning to move faster in quick sands, practicing punches and kicks in the river…and running away from a t-rex!

 

Then, there was improving punch speed by tending rice fields with their bare hands, improving upper body strength by trying to push a big rock, which goku aced it like a pro, even scaring master roshi! Bulma even managed to push it, even if it was only by one inch. They then improved kick speed by swimming…while being pursued by a shark!

 

Then, the students learned how to dodge enemy attacks while being bound to a tree. To do that, roshi angered a bee hive, and all three use their agility to avoid the bees. Bulma started getting better and better, showing some impressive reflexes and agility. Of course, everybody got stung, but their agility improved, that’s what’s important!

 

And, finally, the final test was all about carrying master roshi’s 20kg turtle shell! Goku lasted the longest, while bulma tried her hardest before being crushed by the weight. Krilling passed the test after a few bouts of effort.

 

After they spend a few days with their turtle shells on their back, the trio was then ordered to jump. Bulma actually jumped higher than a basketball player. Krillin jumped a bit higher than bulma, but goku almost reached the sky  with one single bounce!

 

“yay! This is awesome!” goku shouted.

 

“I know, right?” krillin said.

 

“phew, I’m just glad I survived!’ said a totally tired bulma.

 

“allof you have done well, to the best of your abilities, and you manged to surpass your barriers!” roshi said. “now, to test all of your newly-acquired skills, I strongly recommend that you compete in the tenkaichi budokai!”

 

“yes sir!” krillin said.

 

“That’s the reason I’ve been training!” said goku.

 

“uh, no.”  


A record scratch was heard when bulma said that, prompting everyone to look at her. “Huh? You’re not going to compete with yamcha? Why?” goku asked his friend.

 

“Look, goku, now I get why you think martial arts is fun, and I am definitely proud of  myself for what I achieved and the results it gave me…”she said, as she admired her now-toned body and newly-developped, yet feminine-looking muscles on her arms, back, glutes and legs (she returned to her tank top and shorts.) “…however, fighting is just not my cup of tea! I much prefer working in the lab than going in a ring fighting other people!” bulma explained to goku.

 

“Pff, she’s just scared of facing me and goku! She knows she has no chance!” krillin thought.

 

“aw, that sucks…”goku sighed.

 

“Well, she learned how to defend herself, at least…and she’s hotter than ever!” roshi exclaimed, before receiving a flying kick from bulma.

 

“But, don’t worry, goku, I will support you, krillin and yamcha at the tournament!” bulma assured him.  
  
“Alright! See ya at the budokai, bulma!” goku

 

“you too goku! And krillin, too!” bulma said, waving good bye to the rest  of the turtle school as she left onboard her airplane.  Roshi then turned his attention to his remaining students.

‘’welp, no time to time to waste.’’ roshi told goku and krillin. ‘’let’s go to the tournament!’’

 

Roshi then summoned his speedboat once again, and the three left for the island near west city, nicknamed ‘’budokai island’’ due to the tournament taking place there. Roshi made sure they were properly dressed for the occasion.

 

Once they reached the port of budokai island, they were greeted with an incredible sight: a huge plaza with Chinese-style decorations everywhere, with the entry to the fighters competing in the tournament being guarded under the watchful eyes of two imposing lion statues. There was all sorts of people strolling around. Martial artists, fans, anthromorphs, celebrities, the tenkaichi budokai brings people of all sorts of background and culture, all united under one cause: the love of martial arts.

 

‘’whoah, it’s so big!’’ goku said, embracing the  view.

 

‘’I’m actually kind of intimidated!’’ krillin said.

 

‘’now now, kids, keep your cool!’’ roshi said.’’you need it if ya want to win the budokai.

 

‘‘HOI!!!’’ a female voice attracted the turtle trio. It was bulma, with yamcha, oolong and puar following her. Goku was really happy to see his friends again.

 

‘’good to see you again, goku!’’ yamcha greeted him.

 

‘’You too, yamcha!’’ goku said. ‘’you cut your hair?’’

 

‘’yeah, to make myself presentable. I  want everybody in the world to know that the hottest college prospect in baseball can kick some butt!’’  


‘’and look good doing it!’’ bulma said, kissing his boyfriend, making roshi jealous in the process.

 

‘’and you haven’t changed a bit, oolong!’’

 

‘’yeah, you neither!’’ said an annoyed oolong.

 

‘’oh, guys, you already know master roshi, but here is my friend krillin!’’ goku introduced the former shaolin monk.

 

‘’sup?’’ krillin simply said.

 

‘’so, you ready to fight, goku?’’ yamcha asked.

 

‘’You bet I am!’’ goku answered.

 

‘’if you wish to fight, you have to register first!’’ roshi said.

 

‘’OMG, My daughter is back from her training trip!!’’ shouted panchi running towards her embarrassed daughter. ‘’oh my, your muscles and your curves are so developed, bulma! What kind of training did master roshi taught you?’’

  
‘training from hell!’’ bulma said, remembering how painful it was.

  
‘‘my, I have to say, I didn’t think you’d survive that martial arts training of yours!’ an old, mustached man appeared, wearing a scientist outfit. ‘oh, you must be goku!’’ the old man greeted the monkey boy.

 

‘uh-huh, who are you?’’ goku asked him  
  


‘’I am bulma’s father, dr.briefs!’’

 

‘’WHAT? THE dr. briefs?’’ krillin said. ‘’ what brings you here?’’  


‘’oh, I simply wanted to know the new friends that bulma met during her search for the dragon balls. That voyage gained us a lot of scientific knowledge concerning ancient artifacts of legends. But I was also curious about you, goku…is it true that you had a monkey tail?’’ dr. briefs asked goku  
  
‘’yeah, but it’s gone, I don’t know why.’’ Goku said.

 

‘’mmm…’’ dr.briefs checked on goku’s cut tail. ‘’…it appears to have been cut…and not in a surgical manner…’’  
  
‘’you know who cut  it?’’ goku asked.

 

‘’d-dad, how about we leave the science stuff for later, hmm?’’ bulma interrupted his father. ‘’so, shall we enter the stadium?’’

 

‘’yeah, but we need to register first!’’ goku said. goku, krillin, yamcha, bulma and master roshi all went to the registeration table.

 

‘’these two children shall enter this tournament.’’ Roshi said to the registerator.

 

‘’uh, are you sure?’’ the man asked him, not sure if he should allow this.

 

‘’these are no ordinary kids…goku, push that palm tree, please.

 

‘’roger!’’ goku said, as he did exactly that, stunning the tournament organisers.

 

‘’u-u-uh, ok, they’re in!’’ the registerator said.

 

‘’oh, and also register…’’goku whispered to the registrator.

 

He then smiled like a happy kid on his birthday, as he went towards bulma and yamcha, the latter finished registering.

 

‘’why are you so happy, goku?’’ bulma asked him. ‘’are you that  excited to enter the tournament?’’

 

‘’yeah, haha!’’ goku exclaimed. ‘’but i'm even more excited to face  you, bulma!’’

 

‘’huh? W-w-what do you mean?’’ bulma asked him.

 

‘’I registered you in the tournament, so that you can show us the skills you’ve learned!’’

 

‘’YOU WHAT?!?!?!’’ Bulma screamed as she ran towards the organiser.

 

‘’ah, mrs. Briefs!’’ the tournament organiser said. ‘’everyone is surprised at your participation! It sure will bring in spectators!’’

 

Bulma couldn’t believe what she just heard…goku literally registered her name so that she will compete in the tournament! the crowd looked at her in stupefaction, yamcha couldn’t believe it, his dad fainted and her mom was even more embarrassing than ever! Then, goku came up to her, all smiles.

 

‘’so, are you excited?’’ goku innocently asked.

 

  
‘’G….GOKUUUUUUUUUUU!!!’’

 

END OF CHAPTER 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YUP, YOU READ THAT RIGHT! not only did bulma learned martial arts...goku made sure she was gonna compete in the tournament!
> 
> i basically invented the whole philosophy of the turtle school on the spot, basing it on what i think the core values of dragon ball really is about. 
> 
> of course, you could also interpret it as master roshi making shit up to sound cool!
> 
> also, the training sequences is a bit abridged, as i don't wanna spend an eternity describing training sessions!
> 
> thank you for reading!


	7. The tournament begins!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> finally, the tenkaichi budokai begins! will the gang reach the finals? Will bulma actually compete? And if so, will she win a match? And who is this mysterious old man, Jackie chun?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Following is not for profit. it is strictly a fan work meant for personal amusement. Dragon ball, dragon ball z and dragon ball super is property of Akira toriyama, toyotaro, shueisha, Toei animation and shonen jump. please support the official release.
> 
> Some ideas from this fanfic are taken from Lawrence Simpson, AKA: Masakox of teamfourstar fame. check out his what-ifs, they're pretty interesting!

"What the hell, goku?" bulma shouted to the monkey boy, who registered her name in the tournament without her permission. "i told you I don't like fighting!"

"how can you say that if you don't even try?" goku asked his purple-haired friend.

"DO I LOOK LIKE I WANNA TRY IT?" bulma asked rhetorically.

"goku is right." master Roshi said to bulma. "what's the point of saying that you don't like it if you don't even bother trying IT?" 

"because I don't want to get my face smashed in by violent brutes! besides, fighting is not feminine!" bulma told roshi.

"oh, how wrong can one be!" roshi laughed. "the people who compete in the tenkaichi budokai aren't bloodthirsty barbarians out to beat each other. they are martial artists looking to test their skills and prove their worth to others and themselves! Even female fighters are competing this year!" roshi says while peeping on the female fighters passing by.

"but why?" bulma asked to herself as she saw the female fighters.

"while it's true that fighting is not a traditionally feminine field, it's worth noting that they are at least trying it." Dr briefs said.

"yeah, to be honest, I'd love to see you try your hand at this, babe!" yamcha told his girlfriend.

"b-but..."

"if I know someone who is always willing to try new stuff, it's you, dear!" Burma's mom said. "besides, I'd love to see how good you are at martial arts!"

"mom..."

"yeah, bulma, you should try competing!" goku suggested. "who knows, maybe you'll be happy that you did!"

bulma was stunned by her entourage cheering her to compete. she never thought about actually going through with this. hell, she'd never thought that her journey for the dragon balls would lead to her making new friends, finding love, and, more recently, learning martial arts to defend herself. now that they're mentioning it, she does want to know if she would be capable of defending herself.

"well..." she sighed. "...it won't hurt to TRY, I guess..." she said, prompting everyone to express their joy. "...no, it will DEFINITELY hurt!" she thought.

"yeah! I can't wait to see what you got!" goku told her.

"really? you don't stand a chance!" krillin taunted.

"i'll shut you up for good, you little runt!" bulma exclaimed.

"now now, everybody, save your energies for the tournament!" roshi warned. " i'm afraid its time for us to part ways, unfortunately."

" what? you're not competing, master? asked goku.

"hohoho, at my age, I prefer cheering for you on the side!" He answered. " now put on your uniforms. you're representing my school, after all!" He then said, giving his students the turtle school gis.

little did they know, that roshi was indeed going to compete...

goku, krillin and bulma changed into their his in the restrooms...except goku, who changed In front of everyone.

"GET OVER HERE, YOU DIMWIT!" bulma shouted, dragging goku to the restroom. once they came back, they rejoined yamcha in front of the stadium entrance.

"Good luck, honey!" Bulma's mom shouted to her daughter. "Go kick some butt!"

"its my butt that's gonna be kicked..." bulma thought, becoming nervous as he followed the boys inside the stadium...

inside the stadium were multiple indoor rings made specifically for the preliminary rounds, where the contestants will fight each other until only 8 remains. the last 8 will then proceed to the quarter-finals.

The gang felt small around The large gathering of martial artists, some having some mean looking faces.

"wow! there's so many fighters here!" exclaimed goku.

"yeah! The competition's gonna be tough!" krillin said.

" I can't wait! are you excited, babe?" yamcha asked bulma, fisting his hand.

"y-yeah, honey, i-i-i can't wait!" bulma said nervously, wondering in her head why did she agreed to this.

then, an old man appeared besides the group. he had slicked back white hair, a trimmed beard and was wearing a black kungfu outfit with white lining. he looked like he was going to meet royalty.

"first-timers, huh?" he asked the group.

"yeah." krillin answered.

 

"then welcome to the budokai!" The old man said, shaking hands with everybody. " I hope you'll go far, as I desperately want to face new challengers!"

" you look like you've competed there before, old man." goku remarked.

"indeed!" He confirmed. "I've won this tournament several times!"

"no offense, but aren't you getting a little old for such a high level competition?" bulma asked.

"i understand your concerns, darling..." he said winking at bulma, stunning her and yamcha. "...but its been so long since I faced fresh faces that just seeing you and the new crop of fighters was enough motivation to wear the kung fu shoes again!"

"cool! would love to face you too, gramps!" goku said. "what's your name?"

"jackie Chun! a pleasure to meet you all!" The old man introduced himself.

"my name's son goku!" The monkey boy said.

"hey, yamcha..." bulma whispered in her boyfriend's ears. "...doesn't he look familiar to you?" she asked him

"uh...yeah, he resembles muten roshi." yamcha whispered back.

"The resemblances are uncanny." bulma said to him.

"attention, please!" shouted a tournament organiser on a microphone. "the preliminary rounds are about to start. we will proceed with the draw!"

"hmm, looks like It's starting." jackie chun said. "welp, gotta run! good luck, young ones!" he said to the gang.

"good luck to you too, gramps!" goku waved back at him.

all of the fighters gathered around the rings, waiting for the draw to start. in the middle of the ring installed in the center were two tournament organisers, one carrying the microphone, the other carrying a bowl made of glasses, though it was covered by a blanket with a hole on top for entering the arm inside the bowl.

"As per tradition, we will draw the names of the contestants to set up the fights of the preliminary rounds." the man with the microphone told to the whole gathering of fighters. "all of the fights in the preliminary rounds will take place on the three rings here." he said, pointing at the three rings placed in the middle of the room. "and now, time for the draw!"

The other man put his hand inside the bowl, mixing the names registered inside. everybody was nervous, especially bulma.

"first fight: the karate master, okono Miyagi..."

a buff man in a karate gi smiled upon hearing his name.

"...vs...."

"oh please, Kami, dontnamemedontnamemedontnameme..."

"...The famous scientist, bulma briefs!"

Burma's heart sank faster than the titanic upon hearing her name. everybody in the room looked at her, some even whispering to each other.

bulma then looked at Miyagi, who only looked at her coldly, sending shivers down her spine. "oh, god, help me!" bulma thought.

" you can do it, bulma!" goku cheered.

"always so positive, are ya..." bulma sighed.

"its alright, babe, just do your best, the results don't matter." yamcha said to encourage his girlfriend.

both bulma and Miyagi climbed up the ring, facing each other. bulma took a deep breath and tried to calm herself.

"alright, lady and gentleman..." the referee in the middle said. "...let me remind you of the rules: there's no time limit, you can fight as long as you want. the match is won when one of you knocks the other out or gets sent out of the ring, or by submission or forfeit. a knockout occurs when a fighter gets knocked down and can't get up after a count of ten. attacks to the groin, fish hooking, eye gouging, and attacks with the intent to kill the opponent, are strictly forbidden. have I made myself clear?"

"yes sir!" both fighters exclaimed.

" good! now bow to each other and, finally, protect yourselves at all time!" The referee gives his final instructions as bulma and Miyagi bowed to each other.

bulma put herself in an awkward fighting stance, everybody laughing at her except her friends, who were cheering for her, and Jackie chun, who watched with intent.

" well, this is it..." bulma thought. "...no turning back! will I regret this or not? only one way to find out..."

"ready?"

Miyagi nodded.

"ready?"

bulma nervously nodded.

"HAJIME!!"

Miyagi quickly pounced on bulma, surprising the female scientist and crawled in reflex. goku and yamcha looked on, while krillin was smiling cockily.

"heh, it's over before it even started!" krillin boasted, convinced that bulma was gonna lose.

"GET OFF OF ME!!" bulma shouted in panic as she somehow managed to lift the karate master and throw him with the energy of despair over her shoulders, sending him crashing down the outside of the ring, to the audible surprise of the crowd!

"Ring out! winner: bulma briefs!"

when bulma heard she was the winner, she snapped out of her panicked state and turned around, realising that she managed to throw her opponent to the outside of the ring! she just stood there, she couldn't believe what she had done!

goku and yamcha headed to the ring to congratulate bulma, with a stunned krillin leaving his mouth hanging, with Jackie chun looking at the scene right besides him.

"a back body drop...nice technique!" chun remarked.

when bulma passed krillin by, she stocked her tongue put at him, mocking the bald monk and making him angry.

"she dares mock me, a boy who dedicated his life to martial arts!" He thought.

"HAH! I wouldn't be surprised if you were beaten by a girl like her!" a jock-like voice said.

krillin turned around and went pale upon seeing two shaolin monks, one short and muscular, the other tall and lean. he recognised who they we're, and all sorts of confidence he had went down the toilet.

" well, if it I sent our good old punching bag!" The shorter monk, lao, said.

"...hello, guys..."

"its been a long time since I've seen you, krillin!" The taller one, Minh, told him "last time I saw you, you cried out of the temple!"

krillin didn't say anything, bowing his head.

"surely, you don't expect a dropout like you to won the whole thing?" lao said.

krillin remained silent.

"how horrible! wasting these warrior's time on deserters like you!" Minh said arrogantly. "remember what the sifu taught you? that those who abandon the teachings of the temple will never become true martial artists?"

goku heard these words, and turned around to see krillin getting pushed around by two aggressive monks. somewhere inside him, his heart tightened, and some kind of rage was boiling inside him, making him look serious and angry.

" guess who're you're gonna face, krillin?" Minh asked him.

"...who?"

"you're looking at him!" Minh laughed, while krillin looked like he was about to cry.

goku and bulma moved towards their bald teammate when the two monks left for the ring. bulma saw goku's face. as much as she hates seeing people get pushed around like that, goku looked particularly furious! she never saw him this angry. his stare said it all.

"why do you let them talk to you like that?" goku asked krillin.

"because..." tears started to flow from krillin's eyes. "...they're telling the truth! look, goku, the real reason why I left the shaolin...is because every time I tried my hardest there, there was people better than me at everything! learning techniques, sparring, philosophy, you name it! because I had more difficulties than anybody else, I was always mocked and pushed around by those guys! They know me better than anyone! i can tell you that, because the grand master of the temple found me all alone, as a baby!"

goku and bulma listened to what he said, and were sympathetic to the bald kid. bulma, especially, discovered that that cocky, macho personality he had was all a facade, and when he told the part about being an orphan, it shocked her. goku related to the fact that he was an orphan, too, and it made him realise that he and krillin weren't so different after all.

"maybe..." krillin said, all depressed. "I should just drop out..."

"krillin..." bulma said.

" NO, KRILLIN, DON'T DO THAT!!" goku shouted, to both krillin and Burma's surprise. "you dropping out means that you admitt defeat! do you know what my grandpa told me, before he died? he told me to never give up, even if all hope seems lost!" goku put his hand on krillin's shoulders. "show this punk what you're made of!"

"g-goku, I..."

"he's right, krillin!" bulma said. " the best feeling in the world is when you prove your doubters wrong! you're gonna get in that ring and prove to him that words will never let you down!"

"...i already dropped out of the shaolin..." krillin said. "...i shouldn't be ashamed of that, because I found exactly what I was looking for with master roshi...alright, I'll go fight him!"

"that's the spirit!" goku said, patting krillin like a friend. "now go get this asshole!"

" goku, watch your language!" bulma said to the monkey boy.

"oops, sorry!" He said, scratching his head.

krillin and Minh got in the ring, Minh confidently taking a fighting stance, while krillin looked stoic, putting a poker face on.

"so, ready to get put in your place, failure?" Minh cockily asked.

krillin only answered with a fighting stance. 

"alright, tough guy..." Minh said "...SAY YOUR PRAYERS!!"

"HAJIME!!"

krillin then blasted off at a seemingly inhuman speed, catching Minh and even his friends off guard. he then appeared on the side of Minh, and kicked him so hard he flew away and blew a hole through the wall! lao was so scared that he immediately fled.

"There ya go, krillin!" goku shouted, as he hugged his teammate.

"y-yeah, I did it!" krillin was the happiest guy in the world right now.

" oh, god, I hope I won't face him... or goku!" bulma thought as she smiled at the boys.

yamcha easily won his preliminary fight, showing some improved technique and footwork, and his wolf fang fist is as potent as ever. now, It was time for jackie chun to fight. the gang especially wanted to watch him  
goku, krillin and yamcha wanted to see if he had any weakness they could exploit, while bulma wanted to know if her assumptions of him being master roshi in disguise was true.

"Giant rhozmov vs jackie chun!" The announcer...well, announced.

" it's "the sexiest old man alive" jackie chun, thank you very much!" he said while winking to the female fighters, who laughed at him.

"he does have roshi's womanizing ways..." bulma thought. "and he even has the same posture as him: upper body inclined forward, hands behind the back..."

As the fight began, the giant that faced chun immediately attacked...only for the old man to dodge everyone of it. he dodged son much, in fact, that all it took was one trip, and the giant fell out of the ring!

"woah, he moves fast for an old man!" goku said.

"he beat him by only dodging!" krillin said.

"man, hitting him is gonna be tough." yamcha said.

"HAHA! How's that, ladies?" jackie said, doing the peace sign.

The gang and Jackie chun won the rest of their preliminary fights, the men easily, while bulma once again had comedic luck behind her, winning all of her fights in similar fashion to her first. this meant that somehow, someway, she managed to go through to the quarter-finals!

"way to go, bulma! I knew you could do it!" goku told his friend.

" haha, it went better than expected , that's for sure!"

"your parents are gonna be proud of you!" yamcha said.

"she was only lucky." krillin said.

"hmm, I smell some jealousy in here!" bulma said to krillin in a playful manner.

"now that I've beaten my bullies, nothing will stop me from winning! especially not a girl!" krillin boasted.

"keep talking big, boy! that girl can easily break your heart as much as win it!" she said, turning to kiss yamcha.

"you're a pretty smart fighter, girl!" Jackie chun said, walking towards the gang. "it seems you understood that it is much easier to win a fight in the tenkaichi budokai via ring out! You always positioned yourself to trick your opponents out of the ring. well done!"

" y-yeah, I totally meant it!" bulma hypocritically boasted.

" however..." Jackie chun took a more serious tone. "...now that you're in the quarter-finals, you will find that facing the best of the best is a much harder time than in the prelims!"

"GULP!" bulma swallowed air in nervousness.

"its alright, bulma, it's gonna be so awesome when we'll face each other!" goku said enthusiastically.

"Awesome for you, maybe!" bulma said in her head. 

" well, I gotta say, you folks impressed me!" Jackie chun then said to the men of the group. "and no offense, but I think I know how to beat you all, heh heh!"

"we'll see about that, old man!" yamcha said in return.

" ATTENTION, PLEASE! THE 8 REMAINING CONTESTANTS MUST COME TO THE SCOREBOARD FOR THE ELIMINATION ROUNDS DRAW!" The announcer said on his Mic.

The 8 REMAINING CONTESTANTS arrive at destination. the gang and Jackie chun made it, as mentioned earlier, but they will also be joined by three characters, each very different in temperament and nature. the first is a must Thai fighter named pamput, who displayed an arrogant confidence in his muay Thai skills, boasting that he could break the hardest of materials with his elbows. the second person is a focused female kung fu artist named tira misu and, finally, a quiet Hindu follower named nam, who was always found praying, even when standing up.

"all right, everyone's here..."the announced said, looking at the 8 warriors in front of him. "...still can't believe that bulma briefs is competing, let alone making it to the quarter-finals! oooh, the ratings and tickets sales this will make!"

The gang only looked at him in confusion.

"ahem, anyways, let's proceed to the draw, shall we?" the announcer said, as he brought another bowl with pieces of paper in it. "so, our first match..." he said, mixing the names before grabbing one. "...the muay Thai champion, pamput!"

pan out only posed confidently.

"pamput?" bulma said.

" you know him, bulma?" goku asked her.

"he's a famous movie star along with being a muay Thai champion." ycha answered.

" and I'm gonna add the tenkaichi budokai to my resume!" pamput said.

"he will face...son goku!"

"cool!" goku said.

"pff, a kid, really? how boring!" pamput said to goku, apparently not even bothering to watch his fights.

"our next match is...tira misu..."

The female kung fu expert only did a kiai in response.

"....against the warrior from the far east, Nam!"

" I am no warrior..." nam said with an almost eerie calmness. "...i am simply a follower of Vishnu."

"...ooookay..." the announcer said. "...up next is....Krillin!"

"alright!" krillin shouted.

"...against bulma briefs!"

bulma only looked at krillin, who was flowing with confidence. it seems she would finally have the opportunity to show him what a girl can do...if only it was another girl who was as good as krillin, and not her!

"aw, shucks, I won't get to face any girls." jackie chun said.

"...he really is similar to roshi in a lot of ways...i think bulma is right!" yamcha thought

"...It means that the last match of the quarter-finals is Jackie chun vs the hottest prospect in college baseball, yamcha!" The announcer said.

finally, the draw has been made! all of the contestants looked at their opponents in anticipation and nervousness, as the quarter-finals of the tenkaichi budokai will soon begin!

END OF CHAPTER 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yup, it's time for the quarter-finals!
> 
> so yeah, I wanted bulma to be in the quarters, cause I feel a fight with krillin would be interesting. to make Burma's wins getting there seems realistic for the character, I would have her win through a Mix of comedic luck and some smart strategy. I hope you like the idea of bulma learning to defend herself and understand why goku loves fighting so much!
> 
> as for the remaining three contestants, only nam remains from the original tournament. I put pamput in place of the dragon that goku faces in the actual tournament, cause why the he'll would they allow animals to compete? now, anthromorphic animals like man-wolf, I accept, cause anthros are basically humanized animals, but not full-on animals like a dragon.
> 
> also, I put an OC in place of ranfan. honestly, I don't mind fanservice, but sometimes, early dragon ball went too far with the fanservice, as it kills the mood and pacing of some scenes. for those wondering, Tira misu is basically the female monk from dragon quest 3 (The NES/old artstyle version)
> 
> also, the two monks who bullies krillin are from the anime filler. I thought it actually added an interesting insight in krillin's past, so i put them in. their names are completely made up, though.
> 
> thank you for reading


	8. the quarter-finals

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> in front of a packed crowd, the tenkaichi budokai rages on, with the quarter-finals being the next step. while yamcha faces the mysterious Jackie chun, goku faces the muay thai champion, pamput! plus, the mysterious past of nam is revealed, and bulma faces her biggest test yet in krillin!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Following is not for profit. it is strictly a fan work meant for personal amusement. Dragon ball, dragon ball z and dragon ball super is property of Akira toriyama, toyotaro, shueisha, Toei animation and shonen jump. please support the official release.
> 
> Some ideas from this fanfic are taken from Lawrence Simpson, AKA: Masakox of teamfourstar fame. check out his what-ifs, they're pretty interesting!

a large crowd gathered around the site of the tenkaichi budokai finals: a beautiful outdoor arena surrounded by the capital city of the island. thanks to their influence, Dr.briefs and his wife panchi got front row seats, bringing oolong and puar with them.

"Did you hear the news, dear?" panchi joyfully asked her husband. "our daughter has reached the quarter-finals!"

"unbelievable..." Dr briefs whispered, stroking his mustache.

" wow, can't believe she made it that far!" oolong said.

"yamcha chose his girlfriend well!" puar said.

meanwhile, behind the wall that separates backstage from the ring, the 8 remaining fighters are accompanying the announcer, who led them towards the arena.

"haha, listen to that crowd yattering!" The announcer told everyone, tending his ear. "that's the sound of a sellout crowd!"

"yeah, it does sound like a lot of people." goku said.

" oh,god, my parents must be crazy, right now!" bulma sighed.

"damn right they'd be! you're in the quarter-finals!" said an excited yamcha.

"and I'll stop her there!" krillin said in his head.

"Time to show the world how great I am!" pamput the muay thai champion boasted.

The only ones that didn't talk were the female kung fu expert, tira misu, and the Hindu follower Nam. they had completely serious expressions on their faces, with nam praying. Jackie chun was looking at them.

"hey, why don't you lighten it up a little, uh?" jackie chun tried to be friendly with them, only to be met with a double cold shoulder.

"okay, everyone, stay here." the announcer told the contestants. "when I'll call the respective contestants for each match, that's where you come to the ring. got it?"

The contestants nodded.

"good...its Showtime!" The announcer said, arranging his hair, doing a Mic check, then came bursting into the ring to the cheers of the crowd.

"Aaaaalright, ladies and gentlemen and martial arts fans everywhere, welcome to the finals of the 20th tenkaichi budokai!!"

The crowd cheered even louder.

"woah! there really is a lot of people!" goku said, looking at the crowd.

"it's quite a sight! its almost twice the number of people at my college games!" says yamcha, taking in the sheer number of people present.

" oh, god, I can see my parents..." says bulma as she bowed her head in embarrassment.

"they're all cheering for my inevitable victory!" pamput said cockily.

"and now, without further ado, here is the first match of the quarter-finals! It's the international movie star and muay thai champion, pamput..."

pamput entered the ring to massive cheers, and a group of fangirls were waving banners and screaming.

"...against the little boy that surprised everybody with his talent and strength, son goku!!"

goku made his way to the ring, looking at the crowd in awe. he then saw Burma's parents, oolong and puar, and waved at them.

"Good luck, sweetie! if you win the tournament, I'll gladly make you dinner!" Bulma's mom told him.

" really? awesome!" goku shouted.

 

"Go get em, goku!" puar cheered.

" it won't be easy..." oolong said. "pamput may be a cocky SOB, but he backs it up. goku must be at 100%!"

"come on,oolong, it's goku!" puar said.

"i know, but still, you never know in this tournament.

"alright, fighters, on your marks!" The announcer shouted as goku and pamput stared at each other. goku's friends and Jackie chun were standing behind the entrance, watching it unfold in front of their eyes.

"look, I don't like hurting kids, so be a good boy and declare forfeit!" pamput said to goku. "this is a place for the big boys!" pamput said.

"no thanks!" goku said innocently.

"didn't ya hear what I said?" pamput was becoming annoyed.

" don't listen to him, goku! You can easily own him!" bulma shouted.

"yeah, Bulma's right, you don't look that strong." goku told pamput, who simply laughed it off.

"you don't know who you're dealing with, dontcha?" pamput said. "I'll show you why I am the muay thai champion!" he said menacingly.

"woah, he talks like in a movie!" krillin said.

"yes, a really bad movie!" Jackie chun mockingly said.

then, pamput did the traditional muay thai warm-up dance and ritual, before flexing his eight elbow and plunge it with full stregth into the wall, samshing it into pieces to the awe of the crowd.

"amazing!" krillin said.

"see, I told you he backs it up!"oolong told puar.

" oh my! are my daughter's potential opponents that strong?" panchi ask.

 

"unbelievable!" Dr. briefs said, mesmerized by the strength shown by the muay thai champion. "I should do a research on martial artists. I want to know how are they able to achieve such superhuman feats!" He thought.

"oh boy..." bulma said, thinking that goku is gonna find it tough.

"you convinced now?" pamput asked goku.

"Aw geez, the fights haven't started yet, and we already need to repair the wall!" The announcer sighed.

"nah, it's all right, the view is perfect from here!" Jackie chun said.

"just as I thought, you aren't that strong!" goku said, unimpressed.

"grr, you got some nerves, kiddo!" pamput said. " I've been doing muay thai since I was a child! when I was your age, I fought against people older than me, and I gave them beatings so severe, they never stepped foot in a ring again! and if ya need a beating like that to make you understand how great I am, then I'll gladly give ya one!"

"in your dreams, pal!" goku Saud, sticking his tongue out.

"alright fighters..."

both fighters took their stances.

"ready..."

they looked at each other with intent.

"...FIGHT!!"

The gong was hit and the first fight of the quarter-finals was underway! usually, muay thai fighters feel their opponent so as to find a rhythm and see if they had any weaknesses. not pamput. he pounces on goku, delivering thunderous kicks that goku easily avoids. but then, he blocks one, and was surprised to find himself hurt in his right arm and sliding after impact!

"huh? goku blocked that kick, yet still flinched!" bulma exclaimed.

"muay thai fighters have strong kicks." yamcha explained. "pamput, in particular, is renowned to have the most powerful kicks in the sport. many fighters suffered arm and leg injuries after blocking his kicks."

"ow! that hurts!" goku complained, grabbing his right arm in pain.

" you think that hurts?" pamput taunted. " YOU AIN'T SEEN NOTHING YET!" He shouted, as he leaned at goku, only to rise up and perform an uppercut. goku avoids it, but gets sucked in by the tornado that the uppercut formed, flying into the air!

"WOAH! PAMPUT THREW AN UPPERCUT SO STRONG, GOKU FLEW INTO THE AIR!!" The announcer shouted in his mic.

"woah! how is that possible?" both Dr. briefs and krillin asked at the same time.

"the hurricane upper!" yamcha shouted. "its one of pamput's K.O. moves! he's already unleashing them this early?" he wondered.

"he's taking goku seriously..." Jackie chun said in his head.

As goku fell down to the ground, pamput pivoted and unleashed a big upward kick, showing off his flexibility and hitting goku right in the stomach, cutting his breath short. he then slammed goku on his neck using his leg, making him bounce like a spring.

pamput then grabs goku in mid-air and drives his left knee into goku's stomach, seemingly sending him flying to the outside of the ring...

"Oh no! goku!" bulma and krillin screamed.

"heh, that'll teach him!" pamput thought.

but, somehow, goku turned his body so he can land on his feefeet to the edge of the ring, then, suddenly...

"HAAAA!!!"

that's right, while he was airborne, goku powered up a kamehameha! He then pushed his palms forward to the crowd, the blue wave of energy passing right above the spectators's heads, as he used the kamehameha to launch himself at high speed towards pamput, who stood there not knowing what was going on before a powerful elbow to his liver made him realise what just happened! The shot, combined with goku coming at high velocity, sent pamput crashing into the wall and falling flat on the outside of the ring!

"RING OUT!! WINNER: SON GOKU!!"

As the announcer screamed goku's name and the crowd cheered for the monkey boy, goku grabbed his belly, that knee strike definitely hurt!

" that...was...awesome!!" krillin shouted.

"how in the world were you able to do a kamehameha like that?" bulma asked, flabbergasted.

"simple!" goku said. "as I grabbed my stomach after that guy planted his knee, I managed to cup my hands and concentrate my ki in mid-air. then, when I managed to land near the edge of the ring, I released the energy so that I came with enough speed that my next shot would send him flying!"

"woah..." bulma only said.

"you almost killed the spectators with that blast, though." yamcha said, pointing at the scared spectators that saw the kamehameha pass near their heads.

"sorry!" goku waved at them

pamput tried getting up, but the thunderous shot he received right on the liver pretty much kept him on the ground. the medical team came and put pamput on a stretcher...that immediately got stained with vomit, as pamput's damaged liver regurgitated everything he ate before the tournament started, much to the disgust of the crowd and the other fighters.

"boy, for a skinny guy, he sure eats a lot!" goku said, looking at the pile of vomit.

"we apologize for this inconvenience." the announcer said to the crowd and the live TV audience due to pamput vomiting. "we wish a quick recovery for pamput! now, let's proceed to the next match: tira misu, the lady of war, against the Hindu wanderer, nam!"

tira misu headed to the ring with focus and intensity, while nam stayed in the back, praying. Jackie chun came to his side.

"hey, you're lucky to face such a cute girl like that!" chun jokingly said to nam.

he was met with silence.

chun was curious. why is this guy in such a serious mood, when the tenkaichi budokai is all about being upbeat and light-hearted? he needed to know, especially since he can sense an unbelievable aura coming from the nomad. chun then concentrated on nam, and entered his mind using telepathy.

he saw a village in the plains of the far eastern kingdom. the houses were old and the villagers looked like they were thirsty...very thirsty.

"my brother..." a child said to nam. "...my throat is dry!"

"the well has finally dried up, too!" said a woman wearing black robes said, lokking at an empty well.

"it's no good..." said a skinny old man, carrying a dried up plant. "...wuth the sun as hot as this, we can't grow anything...this village is done for!"

"only two months remain, my friends, before the rainy season arrive!" nam tried cheering his village, to no avail. "meanwhile, I'll go make trips to the city to buy some water."

"but nam." the old lady said. "even if you do that, with our crops like this...theres no way we'll afford two months worth of water!"

nam felt that the old lady was right...however, he remembered something he saw on TV in the city.

"i will compete in the tenkaichi budokai!" nam proclaimed. " and when I'll win, I'll use the prize money to buy the water! thankfully, the budokai is a week from there."

"yes! You have a good chance of winning it!" The old man said. "you always have been our greatest warrior!"

" but how will you get to the island where the tournament is taking place?" the lady at the well asked nam, since they couldn't afford a car or anything.

but then, the village gathered all of their money to give it to nam in order to cover his travel expenses.

with that done, nam left the village, carrying its hopes of survival on his shoulders.

after seeing this flashback in nam's head, Jackie chun went back to reality, as he saw nam coming to the ring.

"i see...he has more than glory in his mind..." chun said in his head.

"alright, here they are!" The announcer said after the contestants made their way to the ring. "its time for our second fight: tira misu vs nam! fighters, on your Mark!"

" I'll show you what wing chun is all about!" tira misu said, as she leaned backwards, with one hand open and the other closed, both arms extended. this was the traditional wing chun pose.

man calmly took his fighting stance.

"Ready? FIGHT!!"

tira misu immediately launched a flurry of quick-fire punches to destabilize nam. nam fired back with a punch, but the king fu expert counters with a vicious one-inch punch that sends Nam three steps back. she takes advantage of it by kicking him low to lose his balance, then deliver a spinning kick right to his face!

 

The crowd and the other fighters were stunned at this time display.

"she's good!" jackie chun said.

 

nam, however, didn't took long on the ground, as he went back up as soon as possible. and now, he's getting serious!

" you are no ordinary woman..." nam said to tira misu. "...however, whether you're man or woman, it doesn't matter." he said, as he spread his legs in the horse position, putting his hands in front of his Hindu dot on his forehead and began charging his ki. "I must beat everyone standing between me and my village's survival!"

"perfect." said tira misu, smiling. "I won't have it any other way!"

"woah! what's going on?" goku asked.

"what is this power I'm sensing?" krillin asks.

"he's charging his ki." Jackie chun answered. " he's got a great fighting spirit. and now, he's gonna use it!"

"...what are you guys talking about?" bulma asks, unaware of the subtlety of ki.

nam then began jumping and moving around in a frenetic pace, striking tira misu in all sorts of places. she managed to block them and continue her assault. it was a slugfest, both fighters exchanging blows at great speed!

"so fast!" goku and bulma shouted.

" this is two elite fighters going at it!" the announcer and Jackie chun said.

nam eventually landed a clean chop on the back of tira misu's neck. it wasnt powerful enough, however, as she continued her rapid fire fisticuffs, this time at full speed! unbelievably, she wasn't tiring despite throwing so many punches!

As he tried blocking all the punches thrown at him, nam suddenly finds himself near the edge of the ring!

"she's gonna win!" yamcha said.

nam then closed his eyes while blocking to concentrate. tira misu saw it, and interpreted it as a chance to finish the fight!

"OWATTAAA!!!" she shouted, as she lunged with a big punch, putting all of her strength into it.

however, what she didn't know was that, when nam closes his eyes, his senses heightened, to the point that he can visualise everything around him. thus, he saw the punch coming a mile away, leaped high in the air, avoiding the punch, then automatically chops tira misu's neck with full force, sending her crashing on the outside of the ring!

"RING OUT! WINNER: NAM!"

The crowd applauded. nam, after taking a breather, simply and quietly returned to the back and prayed, as if he wasn't missing a beat. tira misu, meanwhile, was caressing the back of her neck in pain. goku and krillin helped her get back up.

"darn..." she sighed. " I lost...im not worthy to be the heir of my family's wing chun!"

"don't say that, I'm sure your parents are proud that you made it this far!" goku said.

"yeah, that was awesome! the sheer speed of those punches were unreal!" yamcha said.

"...thank you." she said, faintly smiling. "...your words of encouragement will lighten up my mood, at least for a while..."

"you can be proud of your performance!" jackie chun said. "while it's true that you have some ways to go to master wing chun, you're on the right path!"

"hai! thank you!" she bowed to the old man before leaving. "my journey's not done! I will compete in this tournament again!"

"After this incredible fight, here is the one fight that got the world buzzing!" the announcer shouted in his mic. " its the bald wonder, krillin, against the beautiful scientist, bulma briefs!"

when Bulma's name got mentioned, everybody started talking among themselves. panchi especially was hysteric, cheering for her daughter, much to dr. briefs and bulma's embarrassment.

bulma took a deep breath of air, closing her eyes to calm herself. "you can do it, bulma..." she said to herself repeatedly as she entered the ring alongside krillin.

she then faced the bald boy, who had a feces-eating grin, utterly confident that he's gonna win.

"no way she's gonna win!" krillin thought. "I've dedicated my whole life to martial arts! I won't lose to some girl who only recently learned how to fight!"

"Let's go, bulma!" yamcha and goku said. "You're gonna win this, I know you can!" goku added.

despite spending some time with the boys and even winning fights in the prelims, bulma still couldn't believe what she was doing. she's a woman of science, not a fighter! she's only there because that stupid monkey boy he met in the woods registered her without permission! not to mention brought her along with him in his training trip with that Pervy old man!

yet, somehow, when she started to train, when she learned to surpass her limits, when she actually started fighting in the prelims...she is starting to get it. not just what it means to surpass your limits, but also why goku enjoyed martial arts so much...

...she began to understand goku...

who he is.

why he loves the things he love.

what kind of person he is.

"This fight will end in one swift blow!" krillin boasted.

but now was not the time to think of all of this! it's time to teach that bald kid a lesson in not underestimating the opposite gender! she took a confident fighting stance, just like krillin, and the two are waiting for the command, the crowd, the gang and her parents cheering on in excitement.

" READY?"

As the command was being told, bulma had one thing on her mind:

"...Oh god, I'm so dead!!"

"FIGHT!"

krillin used his speed again, dizzying a helpless bulma and the crowd.

" Oh, my! he just disappeared!" Burma's mom said.

"he didn't disappear." Jackie chun said. "he is simply running circles around bulma!"

"...he just said her name in a way that feels like he's known her for a while..." yamcha thought, looking at the old man.

" UNBELIEVABLE! KRILLIN MOVES SO FAST, HE'S PRACTICALLY A WHISPER IN THE WIND!!" The announcer screamed at bulma looked at her surrounding in panic. she didn't know what to do against that speed!

then, krillin appeared on her side.

"YOU'RE FINISHED!" krillin shouted, as he was about to land a kick on Burma's face.

bulma screamed in fear and closed her eyes...only to open them and find her arms blocking the kick!

"WHAT?" both bulma and krillin exclaimed, as the former monk backflipped, then leaped towards bulma again, throwing punches and kicks at great speed...only for bulma to block them all on instinct!she then pushed him away with a double palm strike, again relying on the reflex of fear.

when all was said and done, the crowd, the other fighters, Burma's parents, krillin and even bulma were amazed at what just happened.

"WOO HOO!! GO GO GO BULMA!!" her mom shouted, and his dad smiled in amazement.

" haha! that's the spirit, bulma!" goku said.

"you're doing great, babe!" yamcha cheered.

"i...i blocked everything?" bulma said, not believing what she just did.

"h...how is this possible??" krillin was stunned. a total newbie just blocked his best shots! and it's a girl, at that!

bulma, seeing krillin's stunned state, saw an opportunity, and began smiling sinisterly.

"ha! how does it feel, getting beaten by a girl?" she asked in a mocking tone.

this made krillin go fuming, and he resumed his attacks, his punches now more wild and wide,making them easier to block for bulma, who took advantage of it to land several clean counter hits on the bald monk, all the while taunting him about getting beaten by a girl, angering him even more!

" no way! bulma is actually winning!" oolong said.

eventually, bulma managed to force krillin to the edge of the ring. krillin was nervous when he saw just how close he was.

"this is it!" bulma thought, as she jumped towards krillin to finish him off.

 

"TEHYAAAHH!!" She screamed dad she delivered a jumping kick.

however, at that moment, she forgot that krillin is short.

really, really short.

so krillin just stood there as he watched bulma flying over his head and land on the outside of the ring right on her ass!

"RING OUT! WINNER: KRILLIN!"

"oh no!" bulma's mom said.

" WHAT?" yamcha screamed.

"why did she go for a flying kick?" goku wondered out loud. "she had him right there,and he's too short to be hit by one!"

"aw, shucks!" jackie uttered under his breath.

"NONONO!! I HAD HIM!!" bulma said, slamming her heel on the ground in frustration.

"...HAHAHA!! I WON! I WON! I can't believe I WON!" krillin exclaimed as he jumped around the ring in joy.

then, suddenly, he turned around to see a frustrated bulma trying to get back in the ring, disappointed at losing. that's where, to her surprise, krillin helped her get back on her feet, to the applauds of the crowd.

"why are you helping me?" bulma asked krillin. "I thought you were happy that you beat a girl?"

"girl, boy, it doesn't matter to me anymore." krillin said. "i dunno why the other boys think girls have cooties or anything like that, they are capable of doing cool things, too. you were the real winner of this fight, honestly."

"woah...thats awfully nice of you!" bulma told him.

"thanks...not just for the compliment...but for listening to me, you and goku, and actually caring about me." krillin said.

what he told her warmed Bulma's heart. while she does have quite a character and can sometimes be a bitch, helping people's lives is what makes bulma happy. this desire to help people is one of the reasons she and her father invented the hoi-poi capsule. not only she saw a different side of krillin, but goku, as well. seeing the monkey boy getting enraged over seeing his friend being bullied showed how much he cares for his comrades. it showed that goku really is a pure-hearted kid, even despite his utter lack of social etiquette due to being raised in the woods.

"WHAT A SUBLIME PERFORMANCE FROM BULMA BRIEFS! NOW, IT'S TIME FOR THE FINAL MATCH OF THE QUARTER-FINALS: FORMER WORLD CHAMPION JACKIE CHUN VS YAMCHA!"

yamcha and Jackie chun made their way to the ring. yamcha immediately took a fighting stance, but chun just stood there, waiting.

"he's not even taking a stance..." yamcha thought. "...he has too many holes...he must be baiting me! if this guy really is roshi, that explains how he won his fights by only dodging. I have to strike first and see what he's got!"

"ready...FIGHT!!"

yamcha came in, preparing a kick...only to feint and hit a punch...that chun avoids like it's nothing. yamcha then tried a spinning kick and a sweep, but chun avoids them all.

"you have quick movement, and you're experienced in battle..." Jackie chun told yamcha. "...however, there is still a lot of excess movements in your attacks!"

"hey, krillin, that old man is awesome!" goku told his bald friend.

"yeah, he's so swift for an old man!" he answered back.

"yes, no doubt about it...its master roshi!" bulma thought.

"if you're underestimating me this much..." yamcha said, as he leaned backwards, his hands forming fangs. "...then I'll gladly show you what I'm made of!"

"he's gonna go for it!" goku and bulma said.

"w-what's he gonna do?" krillin asked.

"ROUGA FUFUKEN!!!" yamcha howled as he pounced on Jackie chun, delivering a slash...that chun avoids like a badass, rebounds on the wall, backdrops back to yamcha's position, then, with one swift hand movement, blows strong winds that sends yamcha flying down on the outside of the ring!

"RING OUT! WINNER: JACKIE CHUN!"

The crowd applauded silently. after the drama of the bulma vs krillin fight, this one seemed underwhelming to them. goku, krillin, bulma, yamcha and Dr. briefs, however, were stunned at that last move.

"he pushed him without even touching him!" Dr. briefs exclaimed, as if he saw something scientifically implausible.

"w...what just happened?" yamcha asked himself.

"ahh, yamcha lost, without the old man even touching him!" goku said.

"it's as if he threw some invisible force at him!" bulma said.

"oh god, I'm gonna face him?" krillin asked.

alas, little bald monk, you will have to face this more-dangerous-than-expected foe in the semi-finals, and goku will face the wandering nomad looking to save his village, nam! so much at stakes in the semi-finals! who will come out on top and face each other in the grand finals of the tenkaichi budokai?

END OF CHAPTER 8.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HAHA! you thought bulma was gonna make it, didn't ya? xD
> 
> nah seriously tho, I never planned for bulma to go past the quarters. that would be the extend of her abilities, realistically.
> 
> also, pamput's moveset is basically the same as joe higashi from KOF.
> 
> tira misu is basically a female version of ip man, at least, in fighting style.
> 
> thank you for reading!


	9. the first semi-final: goku vs nam

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> it's time for the semi-finals! son goku takes on nam, the wanderer looking to save his village from thirst! will goku prevail, or will the will to save his people drive nam to victory? and is Jackie chun really master roshi in disguise?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Following is not for profit. it is strictly a fan work meant for personal amusement. Dragon ball, dragon ball z and dragon ball super is property of Akira toriyama, toyotaro, shueisha, Toei animation and shonen jump. please support the official release.
> 
> Some ideas from this fanfic are taken from Lawrence Simpson, AKA: Masakox of teamfourstar fame. check out his what-ifs, they're pretty interesting!

the hype was growing among the crowd as they witnessed some exciting fights in the tenkaichi budokai quarter-finals. of note was son goku receiving a beating from muay thai champion pamput, only to get up from that beating and eliminate pamput with a single elbow to the liver. the Hindu wanderer nam won a competitive fight against the wing chun fighter tira misu. bulma came this close to cause an upset and beat krillin, but a mistimed flying kick sent her flying over the head of the short monk and land outside the ring and finally, Jackie chun easily dodged yamcha's wolf fang fist and send him flying with a blow of wind!

 

now, it was time for the semi finals! son goku takes on nam, while krillin goes up against old man jackie chun.

" AND NOW, OUR FIRST SEMI-FINAL MATCHUP!" the announcer shouted in the mic. "THE PRODIGIOUS KID, SON GOKU, VS THE HINDU WANDERER, NAM!!"

goku and nam headed down the ring, goku looking at the wanderer, who was praying while walking, and wondered what must be going on in his mind.

meanwhile, bulma, krillin and yamcha were watching beside Jackie chun, who looked at nam.

" why is he so serious?" bulma asked.

"he might have a chance at beating goku, considering how well he fought last time out." yamcha said.

"he has a good reason to be serious." Jackie chun said, attracting the gang's curiosity.

"ONE OF THESE FIGHTERS WILL HEAD TO THE FINALS, FOR A CHANGE OF WINNING 500,000 ZENI!"the announcer shouted.

when nam heard the prize for the winner, he opened his eyes in excitement. that would be more than enough money to buy enough water to flood the entire village!

"come on, goku!" oolong shouted.

"you can beat him!" bulma shouted.

"If you win, dear, I'll invite you to the family dinner!" Bulma's mom shouted.

" alright!" goku said.

" NOW, FIGHTERS, ON YOUR MARK!" The announcer shouted as both goku and nam takes a fighting stance. goku's was more relaxed, unaware of the real importance behind this fight, from nam's point of view. the Hindu wanderer must win this fight, ant any cost, for his village!

" READY? FIGHT!!"

goku strikes first, delivering a side kick that nam jumps over. he answers with a dive kick, which goku easily avoids. nam then goes on the offensive, hitting lightning fast kicks that goku blocks. goku then fires back with a flurry of punches that nam blocks. the Hindu then counters with a roundhouse kick that goku receives right in the face. but the monkey boy didn't flinch, and sweeped nam's legs with his right leg, then pushes him towards the wall with a powerful palm strike. but nam recovers in mid-air and does a wall jump towards goku and knocks him down with a chop to his neck.

goku lied on his knees, caressing his hurt neck. nam tries to take advantage by pushing him out of the ring, but goku rolled towards the Hindu wanderer like a log and trippped him, causing a stalemate, giving the crowd an opportunity to regain their breath and applaud the two contestants.

"woah! things are going so fast!" krillin said.

" this is truly elite level fighting!" yamcha excitedly shouted.

"The other guy is fighting like his life's on the line!" bulma exclaimed.

"his village is on the line." Jackie chun said.

"huh? his village?" bulma asked.

"yes. it's time for me to tell you nam's story." Jackie chun said,as he proceeded to tell the gang nam's story. when he was done, the gang felt pity for the Hindu warrior. as much as they want goku to win, they can't help but hope for nam to cause an upset.

"hold on..." bulma said, a light bulb shining above her head. "dad has a friend who owns a water company! I can ask him to convince him to provide water for the village!"

"yeah, good Idea, babe!" yamcha said.

"hmm, I don't see anything wrong with that." Jackie chun said. bulma then left the fighters's seat and ran towards where her parents were stationed.

meanwhile, goku and nam were standing still, facing each other, wondering which move they are going to make. then, goku started spinning in place at great speed, catching nam off-guard with a tornado attack!

nam tried running away, but goku followed him everywhere he went! he was then forced to the edge of the ring!

"this is it." nam said, as he saw the tornado coming closer and closer. "I have lost!" he said, as he closed his eyes as he was ready for his doom...

...only to open them and see goku lying on the floor with dizzy eyes!

"OH no, goku spun for too long!" yamcha said.

"GET UP, GOKU!" krillin shouted at him.

nam then analysed the situation. the easiest solution would just be to grab him and pitch him out of the ring...however, he was weary of goku faking his dizzyness and try to trip him again.

that meant only one possible option.

with a kiai, he leaped 10 feet into the air, wowing the crowd and the gang. he then leaned his body forward so that his head pointed to the marble of the ring. he then crossed his arms, forming an X, and plunged down towards goku.

"FALLEN ANGEL'S DESCENT!!"

as he plunged down from the sky, nam then recited a prayer. more specifically, the prayer of mercy before death.

 

goku slowly opened his eyes...then coughed intensely as nam crashed his arms on his throat!!

 

everybody was afraid for GOKU, thinking that nam just killed him!

"start the count, please." nam politely asked the announcer.

"MURDERER!!" krillin shouted. "YOU KILLED HIM!!"

"oh no..." yamcha said.

"Good news, guys! I...wait, what happened to GOKU?" bulma asked, returning from talking to his father.

"FEAR NOT!" nam shouted to everyone. "normally, this technique, when applied with full strength, ends the life of the opponent. however, I am a devout Hindu, so i let him live...unfortunately, he won't wake up until tomorrow morning.

after that, the announcer started counting. everybody looked down, thinking that goku just lost. nam smiled. he wasn't smiling at goku's misery, he was smiling because he will make it to the finals, and have a chance at saving his vill-

"OW, THAT HURTS!!"

A jumping goku shouted as he got up on his feet at 9, as if nothing happened! everybody couldn't believe it, especially nam! a child shouldn't have gotten up from that!

nam didn't know what to do,he didn't expect goku to get up! he decided to improvise, and jumped back into the sky even higher than before!

goku saw him leap into the clouds, and didn't want to be left alone on the ground, so he jumped to the sky too! 

once nam entered the clouds,he plunged down again, redoing the fallen Angel's descent...only to see goku fly pass him, catching him off guard!

when goku saw nam plunging, he decided to plunge too to join him. when he caught up with the Hindu, he taunted him smacking his butt, which led to the comical sight of nam swimming in mid-air to catch goku. when both fighters were at the same height, nam tried punching Goku, only for the monkey boy to avoid it by plunging deeper towards the ground, forcing nam to dive towards him.

as they got closer and closer to the ground, nam crossed his arms again, hoping to strike goku in the back.

but, when goku finally got to the ground, he landed, sidestepped and caught nam by surprise with a big jumping kick, sending the Hindu wanderer out of the ring!

"RING OUT! WINNER: SON GOKU!"

The entire crowd cheered for the wonderful fight they just witnessed. goku's friends all went to congratulate him, Jackie chun looked intimidated by Goku and bulma's parents were amazed at what they saw, especially Dr. briefs.

"yup, I'll definitely study martial artists!" he thought out loud.

"you did it, GOKU!" krillin said as he hugged the monkey boy.

"that was so cool!" bulma said. "my dad looks like he saw the most scientifically impossible thing in the world!" she said, as she looked at her parents.

"woah, he's become way better than all of us!" yamcha said. "now I don't even stand a chance against him!"

"...it seems my training has done wonders to that boy..." Jackie chun murmured worryingly under his breath.

"His training?" yamcha thought. "I knew it! bulma's right, you're muten roshi in disguise!" he exclaimed, pointing his finger at the old man.

"Huh? you think I'm the turtle hermit?" Jackie chun asked yamcha.

"yes! there's no doubt about it! you are way too similar in personality with him, and you just said that your training paid off for goku! You're not even in the crowd during the entire finals!" yamcha said.

"bah, nonsense!" jackie chun said. "nobody has ever saw or talked to the turtle hermit! now, excuse me, I have a final to reach!" he said, as he went towards the ring.

"don't play dumb with me!" yamcha said, as he tried to pull China's hair, thinking it's a wig...only to realise that the hair didn't come off.

"OW, WHAT'S THE MATTER WITH YOU?!" jackie chun said in anger. "YOU TRYING TO RIP MY HEAD OFF OR SOMETHING?!"

"Clever bastard, you glued the wig on your head!" yamcha said.

"Leave me alone! I'm not the turtle hermit! gosh, youngsters, these days, no respect for their elders!" chun said as he went to the garden backstage.

meanwhile, nam got back up and rejoined the ring. he looked devastated. he just lost the one opportunity to save his village. despite this setback, he still went and shook hands with goku, wishing him good luck in the finals.

when he left towards the backstage area, bulma called for his attention.

" Hey, nam!"

The Hindu wanderer looked at the purple-haired girl, and wondered what did she want.

"people of my village...I'm sorry..." nam said in his head, looking mournful."...i wasn't strong enough to win... i couldnt bring you back water..."

he then looked at bulma.

" what is it?" he asked.

"...i know about your story." she said, surprising the wanderer. "I'm sorry you have lost."

"its alright, the child beat me fair and square." nam said in a disappointed tone.

"...but don't sorry, your village will get some water!" she exclaimed.

"huh? what do you mean? nam asked.

"my father has called a friend who owns a water supply company." she explained. " they talked on the cell phone and he agreed to supply water for your village! and the best part? my father will pay for the expenses!"

nam couldn't believe his ears. just as he thought all hope was lost, Shiva gave her a gift from the heavens. his mournful face made way for a delighted smile.

" Oh, thank Vishnu! thank you so much! I don't know how to repay you..."

"nah, it's alright, you don't owe us anything." bulma said.

" Oh, no, we owe you our entire lives!" he said, weirding out bulma. "you and your father shall receive the status of saviors!"

"huh...thanks?" bulma didn't know what to say, but nonetheless, she was happy to make people smile.

goku saw everything that happened, and then walked towards bulma, looking at the jubilant nam.

" what a weird guy..." goku said, completely unaware of the context. "why is he happy if he lost?"

" Oh, goku, always late to the party..." bulma sighed. she then explained nam's story to him as they went back to the fighters's spot.

when nobody was in the garden anymore, Jackie chun sneaked by and ran towards nam.

"Hey you! nam, right?" Jackie chun asked.

"huh? isn't your match starting soon?" nam asked chun.

"yeah, yeah, but I want you to do a favor for me." he said, attracting his curiosity.

"uh, what?"

" listen..." chun said as he took a serious tone. "...im not actually who I pretend to be...im muten roshi, the turtle hermit!"

"YOU'RE THE TURTLE HERMIT?" nam shouted.

"SHH, not so loud, everybody will hear you!" chun hurriedly put his hand on nam's mouth.

"but I heard the turtle hermit was bald!" nam said, pointing at Chun's hair.

"indeed, i am." roshi said. " the hair on my head is actually a wig that I glued together. such a pain in the ass to deal with, though..." he said, wanting to scratch his head. "...anyways, my students and their friend are getting suspicious, and i dont wanna blow my cover. and that's where you come in..."

"AND NOW, IT'S TIME FOR THE SECOND SEMI-FINAL MATCHUP: FORMER CHAMPION JACKiE CHUN VS THE UPSTART ROOKIE, KRILLIN!!"

krillin entered the ring, soon followed by Jackie chun. the crowd was cheering for Jackie, who was a favorite among martial arts fans.

"now, before we begin this matchup, I'd like krillin to answer a question..." the announcer said, looking at krillin. "...you, bulma briefs and son goku are wearing identical gis. are you guys part of the same martial arts school?"

"yup! the turtle school!" krillin proudly shouted.

"NO WAY! you heard that, ladies and gentlemen? these three are trained at the same school as the greatest martial artist of all time, son gohan!" the announcer shouted to the intrigued crowd.

"wait, you guys know my grandpa?" goku asked.

" WHAT? SON GOHAN IS YOUR GRANDPA??" the announcer shouted. "kid, once the grand final starts, I'm definitely interviewing you!"

"okay!" goku said, making bulma chuckle.

"WILL WE HAVE TWO STUDENTS OF THE GREAT MUTEN ROSHI MEET IN THE GRAND FINAL? HE MUST BE WATCHING THEM WITH ADMIRATION!"

"he's here, staring at krillin!" bulma shouted, pointing at Jackie chun.

"argh, you too? why does everybody thinks I'm muten roshi?" he complained.

"because you are, dumbass!" bulma shouted back.

"BULMA, BE RESPECTFUL!" her mother shouted at her.

"that's a bold accusation, Mrs. briefs!" the announcer said. "roshi retired from active competition a long time ago! surely, he must be among the crowd!"

"he's Jackie chun!" yamcha shouted. " I dunno why he's disguising himself, but it's him!"

" Hey, bulma, I found master roshi!" goku said, as he waved to someone in the crowd.

when bulma and yamcha looked at who goku was waving, imthey couldn't believe their eyes. it was master roshi, waving back at them!

"what...the actual...fuck??"

"see? I'm not muten roshi!" jackie chun said.

"W...WE'RE SORRY!!" bulma and yamcha apologetically bowed.

of course, little did they know, that it was nam disguised as the turtle hermit!

" ALRIGHT, FIGHTERS, ON YOUR MARK..."

krillin and Jackie chun faced each other. both are sweating. not because they're afraid of each other, but because they have to face goku in the finals!

"READY?...FIGHT!!"

END OF CHAPTER 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "the Dragon ball world has cell phones????
> 
> well, bulma and her dad are scientists, so it's plausible that they would've invented them.
> 
> Thank you for reading!


	10. the second semi-final: krillin vs jackie chun

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> after an exciting semi-final matchup between goku and nam, it's krillin and Jackie chun's turn to take the stage! krillin finds out pretty early that the old man is definitely not as scrubby as he looks!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Following is not for profit. it is strictly a fan work meant for personal amusement. Dragon ball, dragon ball z and dragon ball super is property of Akira toriyama, toyotaro, shueisha, Toei animation and shonen jump. please support the official release.
> 
> Some ideas from this fanfic are taken from Lawrence Simpson, AKA: Masakox of teamfourstar fame. check out his what-ifs, they're pretty interesting!

krillin looked at his opponent, the old man, Jackie chun. he didn't seem nervous or anything. this poker face tricked yamcha into being eliminated, so he had to be careful.

after a few seconds of nothingness, krillin struck first, throwing a straight right hand that chun easily avoids with a backflip.

"impressive, for his age!" bulma said.

but krillin didn't stop, punching and kicking at great speed, with Jackie chun visibly finding it harder and harder to dodge them. krillin then sends a left hook that chun manages to grab with his palm.

"hmm, impressive!" chun said. "you made me use my hands!"

chun then threw krillin to the other side, the bald monk landing on his feet. the old man then took the snake style kung fu stance. krillin approached him carefully,only to be sent crashing at the wall with a lightning fast snake strike!

"Wha-" krillin wondered what just happened, his nose bleeding.

"what? where did he hit him? I didn't see anything!" bulma said, confused.

"open your eyes, bulma, I saw it coming a mile away." goku said, surprising bulma.

krillin then got up and faced chun again. the old man stayed in the snake style stance. krillin open his eyes in order to carefully analyse China's movement, wondering if he could see the blow coming,like goku mentioned. he was so concentrated that, suddenly, everything around him ran in slow motion.

then, he saw chun moving his hand to attack.

"I can see!" krillin said to himself as he managed to counter the blow.

however, the entire action was so fast that nobody except goku saw what happened, leading to mass confusion as both fighters entered a stalemate.

"LET'S GO KRILLIN!" goku shouted.

"uh, what?" yamcha and bulma said in confusion.

" WHAT JUST HAPPENED?" the announcer shouted in his mic. "EVERYTHING HAPPENED IN A BLINK OF AN EYE!"

Krillin and chun then attacked at the same time. they clashed so hard, it created a light that blinded everyone around the ring. when they landed, everybody was stunned at what just happened. then, krillin fell down.

The announcer, having recovered his senses, began counting as goku told krillin to get up, which he did at 8, caressing his head in pain.

"he still got up?" chun thought as he looked at the bald monk. "guess he really took his training seriously."

"huh, I apologize for interrupting the match, but..." the announcer said as he walked towards Jackie chun. "...the crowd and I are not sure about what just happened. do you think you can tell us?"

"sure, no problem!" chun answered. "first, I rushed at him at the same time as he did..." he explained. "...then,I tried kicking him, but he ducked..."

"then, I tried an uppercut..." krillin said, mimicking the movements he just did. " then, he started spitting all over my fist! it was so gross, that I pulled back."

" then, I tried sending a right hook..." chun continued. "...but the little brat snoozed some boogers to pull me back, so i changed plans."

"me too!" krillin said. "it took .2 seconds to come up with a new plan. by coincidence, we thought of the same plan."

"and that is?" the announcer asked.

"we decided to play rock paper scissors!" both shouted. "but..." krillin continued. "...i looked away for a second, and Jackie chun clobbered me right in the face!"

"yup, that's that!" chun finished.

"UNBELIEVABLE!! ALL OF THIS TOOK PLACE IN A SPAN OF MILISECONDS!!" the announcer shouted, making the crowd roar.

"d...dont tell me you saw everything?" bulma asked goku.

"yup!" goku simply answered, making bulma and yamcha look at each other in surprise.

"absolutely amazing!" Dr. briefs whispered.

"That little boy is so good!" bulma's mom said about krillin.

"AND NOW, LET THE BATTLE CONTINUE!!" The announcer shouted as both krillin and Jackie chun took fighting stances.

krillin knew that if he fought Jackie chun directly, he'll be wiping the floor. normally, shaolin monks keep on fighting,even if the odds are against them. but krillin is no ordinary monk.

he discretely puts his hand in his go, looking for an object. when he found it, he tossed it to the old man.

it was a pair of panties. jackie chun immediately pounces on it, and krillin takes advantage to send him flying out of the stadium with a kick!

"THAT'S IT, HE'S WON!!" goku exclaimed.

"WHAT THE HELL HE'S BEEN DOING WITH PANTIES ON HIM ALL THIS TIME?" bulma asked loudly about krillin's panties.

" He may not be muten roshi, but he's just as perverted." yamcha said.

"SHIIIIIIiiiiiitt..." chun screamed as he flew away to the stars. with a clever trick, krillin managed to hit a home run out of the park! 

"ka...me...."

his victory is certain!

"ha....me..."

he's gonna face goku in the finals!

"HAAAAAAAAAAA!!!"

with a mighty shout from afar, Jackie chun delivered a massive kamehameha wave that managed to land him back In the ring, to the surprise of everyone!

"no way! energy just came out of his hands!!" Dr.briefs exclaimed.

"I'm baaack!" jackie chun fully said, as if nothing happened.

"W--W-W-WHAT THE HELL???" all of the turtle school students and yamcha shouted, not believing he just did a kamehameha!

"w-w-where did he learn that???" goku asked.

"b-b-but if he's not roshi...but he knows the...WHO THE HELL IS HE??" bulma and yamcha simultaneously asked.

"AMAZING!!" The announcer shouted. "HE JUST DID A KAMEHAMEHA!! ONLY MUTEN ROSHI IS KNOWN TO HAVE USED THIS TECHNIQUE! IS FORMER TOURNAMENT CHAMPION JACKIE CHUM A FORMER STUDENT OF THE TURTLE SCHOOL?"

"heh heh...its time to finish this!" the old man said, taking a weird stance where he put his hands besides his head.

"g-goku, what should I do?" krillin asked the monkey boy.

"win!" goku answered.

" YOU CALL THAT AN ADVICE?" krillin shouted in frustration. "argh, screw it!" he shouted as he bullrushed jackie chun...who then easily avoids him, leading to krillin smashing his head into the wall!

"OW!"

"toro, toro!" jackie chun taunted krillin, making him furious. how dare this old man know a secret technique that took 50 years for master roshi to master?

"SHUT UP!!"he said as he then attempted a kick...only to go right through chun, as if he was a ghost!

"uh?"

"BEHIND YOU, KRILLIN!!" goku shouted to his bald friend. but, alas, it was too late:chun appeared right behind krillin, and struck two pressure points around his neck, paralyzing him, making him unable to answer the ten count.

"10! K.O! WINNER: JACKIE CHUN!!"

"W-WHAT speed!" yamcha exclaimed.

"its as if he created an afterimage when he moved!" bulma said.

"THAT'S IT! MY NEXT RESEARCH WILL BE ON MARTIAL ARTISTS!!" Dr. briefs shouted.

goku then went towards krillin, who was in pain from paralysis.

" what did you do to him?" goku asked Jackie chun with an angry tone.

"relax, kid, I'll give him his movement back." the old man said, as he stroke krillin's pressure points again, making krillin move again.

"ow...that hurts..." krillin complained.

"you did extremely well, young man." Jackie chun congratulated krillin. "you and your friend have all the making of future world champions!"

"i can't wait to face you, old man!" goku said.

"i will show you that, no matter how strong you'll become, there is always someone better." chun said, as he left for the locker room.

"LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, WE WILL TAKE A BREAK TO ALLOW YOU AND THE FIGHTERS TO RELAX BEFORE OUR GRAND FINAL!"

when the announcer said that, everybody went to the concession stands while the fighters went to their locker rooms. bulma's parents joined the group at their lockers.

"OH, it's so amazing, the things you boys are able to do at such a young age!" bulma's mom said.

"these kids aren't normal, mom!" bulma said, playfully punching both goku and krillin's shoulders.

"so, now that I WON my fight, are you gonna invite me for dinner, like you said?" goku asked bulma's mom.

"really? you invited him home?" bulma asked her.

"OF COURSE! In fact, I'm inviting all of your new friends for dinner after the tournament!" panchi said.

"all right!" the boys shouted.

" IT will be the perfect opportunity to study you boys." Dr briefs said.

" what are ya gonna do to them, dad?" bulma asked him suspiciously.

"bulma, do not worry, I'm not a mad scientist willing to experiment on living subjects!" Dr briefs affirmed, thinking about a certain robotics student he knew back in college a long time ago... "I just want to know how martial artists are capable of such scientifically implausible things!"

"sure, we can show you!" goku told the doctor.

" what? you didn't ask my permission!" krillin shouted.

then, amidst the laughter, goku saw Jackie chun looking at him. he stared back with an intensity that he only reserves for certain occasions. he may be an old man, but he is the strongest opponent he will face to date. It made him really excited, his blood boiling like it never did before, raising all of his hair as a sudden surge of power flowed through his veins.

roshi was worried.

his students surpassed all of his expectations. especially son goku. he has incredible potential, beyond any student he ever had. IT seems he will need to use his full strength in a fight for the first time in a while. he doesn't know why, but something about this aura he had...was not human. at least, not like any ordinary human, and not just the tail he used to have.

"son gohan..." he thought to himself. 

"...what kind of boy did you pick up in the woods?"

END OF CHAPTER 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It must suck, being a spectator at the tenkaichi budokai.
> 
> you see these elite fighters fight at speeds you can't even comprehend or follow, and then, they start flying and shooting fireballs and shit, not giving a single fuck about your safety.
> 
> and then, there's majin vegeta...
> 
> Thank you for reading!


	11. Grand finals! Son goku vs Jackie chun!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> At last, the final confrontation for the 500, 000 zennies grand prize! the mystsrious veteran Jackie chun vs the young and wild son goku! who will be the strongest under the heavens?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Following is not for profit. it is strictly a fan work meant for personal amusement. Dragon ball, dragon ball z and dragon ball super is property of Akira toriyama, toyotaro, shueisha, Toei animation and shonen jump. please support the official release.
> 
> Some ideas from this fanfic are taken from Lawrence Simpson, AKA: Masakox of teamfourstar fame. check out his what-ifs, they're pretty interesting!

It is time.

time to find out who will be the last man standing:

the elderly former champion Jackie chun

or the wild, innocent boy son goku.

the sell-out crowd at the budokai stadium anxiously awaits as the announcer made his way to the center of the ring to introduce the fighters.

"LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, IT'S TIME FOR THE GRAND FINALS OF THE 20TH TENKAICHI BUDOKAI!"

the crowd roared in response, oolong and puar waving a self-made flag carrying goku's name.

" AND WHAT A FINAL WE HAVE FOR YOU TODAY!" The announcer proudly exclaimed. "OUR TWO FINALISTS OVERCAME ALL SORTS OF ADVERSITY AND CHALLENGES TO GET THERE, AND THEY HAVE ONLY ONE THING IN THEIR MIND:THE FABULOUS PRIZE OF 500,000 ZENIES IN CASH MONEY!!"

 

the crowd roars again.

" NOW, LET'S INTR0DUCE OUR FIGHTERS! FIRST UP, HE IS OUT OLDEST CONTESTANT, AND HE'S A FORMER 2-TIME CHAMPION. HE MAY BE ELDERLY, BUT, AS HE'S SHOWN THROUGHOUT THIS TOURNAMENT, HE STILL GOT IT! GIVE IT UP FOR JACKIE CHUN!!"

the crowd applauded as the old man stepped inside the ring, giving peace signs to everybody.

" AND HIS OOPONENT! HE WON THE HEARTS OF THE FANS IN ATTENDANCE WITH HIS EXCEPTIONAL SKILLS AT SUCH A YOUNG AGE, AND HIS DETERMINATION IS SECOND TO NONE! GIVE IT UP FOR SON GOKU!!"

goku waved at the crowd as they cheered for him, with oolong, puar and bulma's parents cheering the loudest.

"Let's go, goku!" bulma shouted.

"Beat this old man senseless!" krillin shouted.

goku and Jackie chun stared at each other, both fighters looking pretty determined.

" NOW, before we begin, I'd like to ask goku a question..." the announcer said, walking towards goku. "...you have such amazing skills for such a young age. how old are you?"

"uh..." GOKU then started counting on his fingers. he opened both of his hands, then lifted two more fingers. "...im twelve!"

the crowd were stunned at how young goku was. including bulma.

"12?" bulma said. "Didn't you told me you were 14?" she asked him.

"yeah, but krillin taught me how to count my age. turns out I was really 12!" goku answered.

"huh...thought you looked pretty young for a 14-year-old." bulma said. to think goku didn't even know his own age...

"INCREDIBLE! THIS IS THE FUTURE OF MARTIAL ARTS RIGHT THERE!" the announcer exclaimed. "NOW, IT'S TIME!! FIGHTERS, ON YOUR MARK!"

both goku and Jackie chun took their stances. both the fighters, the crowd and the gang behind the wall were tensing UP, the tone and atmosphere heavy with anticipation, as the time keeper lifted his stick, ready to hit the gong at Any moment.

"Ready...FIGHT!!!"

at the sound of the gong, chun immediately pounced at great speed towards goku, but the monkey boy saw it coming, and jumped high in the air to avoid it. Chun then jumped and delivered a rising kick straight to goku's ribs, sending him flying outside the stadium.

"Uh...thats it?" krillin said.

"wow, goku got beat in one blow!" yamcha said.

"well...looks like it's over, ladies and gentlemen!" the announcer said, to the boos of the crowd. Jackie chun turned around and went towards backstage.

"LOOK, THERE'S GOKU!!" bulma shouted, Ponting towards the sky.

as everybody turned around, they saw goku crashing down the ring, keeping himself in bounds!

"W-what the Hell? how did you get back there?"jackie chun asked the monkey boy.

"Ha! I did the same thing as you, gramps! I did the kamehameha to send me back in the ring!" goku said.

" WHAT?" everybody shouted, they couldn't believe it!

"hmm, so you are able to perfectly copy everything that you see, eh?" chun said. "alright then, how about you try and copy THIS!!" he said, as he cupped his hands together.

"Pff, that's the kamehameha! no need to copy it, I know exactly what it is!"goku said, as he did the same.

"ho ho, but you haven't seen it in its full power!" the old man said as a big, glowing light of energy appeared in both his and goku's palms.

the huge amount of power created winds that blew away the onlookers, ruining their hairdos, sending their hats flying and litteraly blowing away some of the smaller people among the crowd.

"HAAAAAA!!!"

two huge blasts came out of their hands, the collision, inevitable. everybody ran and hid as the two beams collided violently, creating a huge shockwave that sent both fighters and those unfortunate souls who didn't hide in time flying.

once the smoke was clear and the dust settled, bulma, krillin and yamcha were piled up on top of each other, yamcha's weight pressing krillin's face into bulma's ample chest. when bulma opened he eyes, she pushed both men aside and went back towards the ring, finding both goku and Jackie chun down!

"n...no way!" chun exclaimed.

"Heh heh heh, we're even, now!" said a laughing goku.

"is everyone alright?" the tournament announcer asked everybody.

"W-we're alright!!" oolong exclaimed as he, puar and bulma's parents got up.

"OH MY, my hair is all messed up!" bulma's mother exclaimed as she tried putting her hair back in place.

"hey, krillin, ya alright?" goku asked his bald friend upon seeing him. however, he saw that he looked rather dizzy, had a big smile on his face and seemed to have hearts in place of his eyes...

"UNBELIEVABLE!! WHAT WE JUST WITNESSED WAS SOMETHING NEVER SEEN BEFORE IN THE HISTORY OF THE COMPETITION!!" the announcer shouted, still visibly shook. "TWO KAMEHAMEHAS AT ONCE! IT'S DESTRUCTIVE POWER IS SECOND TO NONE! IS THERE ANYTHING THAT IS NOT SURPRISING ABOUT SON GOKU?"

the crowd roared as both fighters went back to their fighting stances.

bulma couldn't believe what she was seeing. how can son goku produce such a massive amount of energy from his body, and then get up like it was nothing? and he seemed to enjoy it like a child playing ball with his friends. thats what struck her about the monkey boy. at first, she wondered why he loved martial arts and fighting so much. however, when she did that training with him, she finally began to understand him. how he trains, how he fights and especially why he fights.

he doesn't fight to win or to prove his superiority to others. he fights because that's where he is at his happiest. testing his limits, surpassing them, trying to search the truth about who he is, what he is. not only becoming a stronger fighter, but a better person through surpassing his limits.

he fights for his own happiness, and the happiness of his friends, as shown when he pep talked krillin into facing his bullies.

"goku..." bulma said, as she watches him continue his fight against Jackie chun. meanwhile, yamcha saw that his girlfriend looked mesmerized.

"hey, babe, you alright?" he asked

"huh? oh, yeah, I'm alright. it's just that I can't believe what just happened!"

"Yeah, that was awesome!" yamcha said. "normally, a full power kamehameha can vaporize mountains, like back in fire mountain!"

"wait, you were at fire mountain?" bulma asked, surprised.

"oh, yeah, right, you never knew that... we followed you there." yamcha said, scratching his head. "anyways, to see goku producing a full power kamehameha and still come out without a sweat...incredible!"

while goku's friends were amazed at this exploit, Jackie chun was sweating hard! goku was much stronger than he realised! now, not only must he use his full strength, he needed to think of a plan...

"what's wrong, gramps? too scared to continue?" goku taunted.

"you'll be too scared to continue after...THIS!!" chun shouted as he disappeared.

"The afterimage thingy!" bulma said.

"pff, ya already did this to krillin!" goku said, trying to see where the old man went. "it won't work on...ME!!" goku said, as he punched chun who was coming to his right...however, his punch goes right through him! it was a second afterimage!!

chun then appears behind him and punts him hard, sending the monkey boy crashing on a pillar.

after this spectacular display, chun then looked at the announcer. "Start the count!" he ordered.

however, the announcer only counted to three when goku got up from the rubbles, surprising everybody, including chun, who looked like he just pooped his pants.

"ow, ya got me right there!" goku said, cleaning the dust on his gi. "Now, it's my turn!" he said, as he produced an afterimage of his own, surprising everybody.

"h-how is he able to learn new moves just by watching?" bulma asked, dumbfounded.

meanwhile, Jackie chun started being irritated with goku imitating his every move. the afterimage he left was obvious to an experienced fighter like him,and he struck the monkey boy on his left...only for his arm to go through him like butter!! he couldn't believe it, he did three afterimage! something even he never did before!!

"GOTCHA!!" goku screamed as he struck chun with a powerful double axe handle, knocking the old man down.

"Amazing!" shouted all of goku's friends.

"this boy is something special..." Dr briefs whispered.

"all these afterimages made me dizzy!" says oolong.

then, Jackie chun got up, having trouble regaining his balance.

"so, how'd you like my triple afterimage?" goku asked the old man.

however, the old man threw a sloppy-looking punch at goku, who avoids it,but then eats a scorpion kick to the face, stunning him, allowing the seemingly drunk Jackie chun to strike him with a wavy double fist in the solar plexus, pushing goku back by several yards.

"wh-whats going on?" bulma asks upon seeing chun seemingly inebriated.

"oh man, that's the drunken fist!" krillin said.

"the what?"

"drunken fist is the most difficult martial art to learn!" yamcha explained. "you have to fight like how a drunkard would fight. however, a drunken master's movements aren't random like a real drunkard: they are deliberately sloppy so that the opponent gets caught off guard by a clean blow."

"oh crap..." bulma cursed, as she knew that goku is really simple-minded. this deceptive fighting style directly exploits goku's main weakness!

"H-HEY, KNOCK IT OFF!!" goku ordered the old man as kept getting caught by sneaky blows. he is unable to see through the old man's quirky and unusual style.

then, he began to remember: his grandpa gohan did a funny fighting style similar to what Jackie chun was using!

goku suddenly retreated into a corner, seemingly sobbing.

"wh-what's "Hic wrong, kiddo? can't "HIC" handle it anymore?" Jackie chun taunted.

however, the confidence of chun faded away when he saw goku on four legs, looking at him with fire in his eyes, his teeth has turned into fangs, and he was groaning like a mad dog! he then immediately pounced on chun with blistering speed, chun only putting his hands up to cover himself...but, at the last minute, goku jumps over chun and kicks him in the back of the head, sending him crashing at the wall!!

"hmfpfmpfff, what the hell was that??" the old man asked goku as he got out of the rubble.

"The mad dog's fury!" goku said, with a peace sign.

"THATS NOT EVEN A MARTIAL ART! YOU'RE JUST MAKING STUFF UP!!" chun shouted.

"well, yeah, I did make this up just now." goku responded matter-of-factly.

"WHAT A FIGHT WE'RE HAVING, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN!!" the announcer shouted. "THE FORMER CHAMPION JACKIE CHUN IS BEING OVERWHELMED BY THE CHALLENGER SON GOKU!"

"ahh, shaddap!!" chun screamed at the announcer.

as chun went back to his feet, he saw goku acting like a monkey! thinking it's a taunt, he attacked goku with speed and ferocity, but the monkey boy jumped and dodged like a chimpanzee, even doing gymnastics on Jackie club's head, prompting the crowd to laugh.

humiliated by the boy, chun then managed to push him back, then starts waving his hands around. he then began singing a mullah to goku...who proceeded to fall asleep!

"MINMIN KEN!" chun shouted, as goku fell asleep on the ground.

"uh, I don't think hypnosis is a martial art, sir." the announcer said.

" hey, it has a fancy Chinese name, so it is! COUNT!" chun ordered.

"yeah, but the crowd will demand refunds if the fight really ends with you literally putting your opponent to sleep!" the announcer tried to reason.

"its not my fault that the kid is such an idiot I could sing him to sleep! COUNT!" chun lifted his tone.

"WAKE UP GOKU!!" goku's friends and bulma's mom shouted at the monkey boy. however despite their constant screaming, goku Sony couldn't wake up! chun, or rather master roshi, finally breathed a sigh of relief. with this win, he'll teach goku that there is a long way to go before he becomes a master of the martial arts...

suddenly, bulma had an idea.

"GOKU!! DINNER TIME!!"

suddenly, goku got up in a flash and looked everywhere looking for food!

chun was dumbfounded! he never realised that goku was that food-obssessed!

" AMAZING!" the announcer shouted "JUST AT THE MERE MENTION OF FOOD, GOKU GOT UP FROM A SEEMINGLY ETERNAL SLEEP!!"

"aww, where's dinner?" goku innocently asked bulma.

" YOU IDIOT! YOU'RE IN THE FINALS, REMEMBER?" bulma shouted back at him.

" huh? oh right!" goku said as he looked at Jackie chun.

"grr, damn you, brat!" chun cursed as both he and the monkey boy jumped at each other.

goku then delivered the rock scissors paper combo...which chun blocks with ease!

" What?"

"haha! I already fought your grandpa before, he did the same technique that you did!" chun said.

goku then seemingly went for it again, chun was prepared to block it again...however, he received two fingers in his eyes, then a palm strike right on the solar plexus, and, finally,a big straight on his nose! he was expecting rock,scissors, paper, he got scissors, paper, rock!

"Let's go goku!" the monkey boy's friends shouted.

chun got up at the count of four, and he looked desperate. this time, he had enough! he never thought he would come to this, but now, he has to do a forbidden technique!

" hey,kid..." chun said,looking casual, catching goku off-guard. "I told you I already fought son gohan before, right?"

"yeah, you told me you fought my grandpa, why?" goku asked.

chun then grabbed his vest and ripped it off, revealing the wrinkles and scars his old upper body carries. besides being disgusted, bulma, yamcha and krillin realised that, by the gravity of the old man's scars, it looks like he had some rough fights in his life.

"what I'm about to do...only your grandpa forced meto do it!" chun said, as he started to assemble his hands together in a prayer.

suddenly,the wind started going upward around the old man, as a big battle aura appeared around his silhouette. he was concentrating his entire ki into his hands. GOKU only looked in awe, he never felt such a ki before!

"BANKOKU BIKKURI SHO!!" chun shouted, as a ki blast emerged from his hand, striking goku and enveloping him in an electric prison he can't get put of! wave after wave of electric shocks attacked his body, giving him immense pain.

 

"Give up! or else you'll die!" said chun menacingly.

goku only answered with sticking his tongue out.

"GOKU, please! it's over! you fought well! don't get yourself killed!" bulma and yamcha respectively said.

goku slowly felt his life fade away, as the pain was becoming too much to bear.

he then saw flashes of his short life passing by.

his moments with his grandpa, who took care of him like he was his own child.

his adventures with bulma, searching for the dragon balls and bonding with his first, and best friend.

his training with krillin, and how he motivated him to beat his bullies.

all of these good moments, all for nothing, as he was about to die...

suddenly, pathetically...

...just like his grandpa...

no...

it can't end like this...

IT CAN'T END LIKE THIS!!

suddenly, goku felt something he has never felt before.

something more powerful, uncontrollable.

rage.

suddenly, the entire stadium was engulfed by a huge, primal scream coming from the monkey boy, and a huge yellow-tinted light waned from him as huge gusts of wind rocked everybody in and around the ring, roshi breaking his hold on him.

"What the hell ?" roshi said, as he saw a huge, golden aura around his pupil. the ki that emaned from goku was...if there ever was a word to describe it, it would be inhuman. it was even stronger than a certain demon king that roshi knew!

the monkey boy's appearance was also striking: gone were his youthful, innocent eyes, and in their stead were white, iris-less eyes filled with rage, and the wild, scruffy black hair turned into clean, spiky blonde hair.

goku continued screaming for 10 seconds, terrifying even his friends, whonlokked as if they faced god himself.

then, suddenly, he stopped.

his huge yellow aura gone in an instant.

his hair turning back to normal.

and his eyes went back to their original colors.

and finally,he fell down hard on the ground, completely exhausted.

the announcer started the count. everybody tried everything to wake goku back up. little did they know, that goku was litteraly too exhausted to get up.

normally, Jackie chun, AKA muten roshi, would have celebrated this victory, doing his cheesy rap, posing with ring girls and drown himself in champagne and food at the after party.

but what he just saw...the ki that he felt...

it made him stand still like a statue.

he was terrified.

terrified of the "child" that son gohan picked up in the woods.

"...and 10! KNOCK OUT! WINNER AND NOW 3-TIMES TENKAICHI BUDOKAI CHAMPION:JACKIE CHUN!!!" the announcer exclaimed.

however, it wasn't time for a festive mood. bulma, her parents, yamcha, krillin, oolong and puar went to tend to the unconscious Goku. a few seconds later, the ringside doctors checked on goku's status. he was still breathing, he was just so exhausted that he fell asleep.

everybody breathed a sigh of relief as goku was brought to the hospital for recovery. Dr.briefs watched as the doctors carried the stretcher to the ambulance, watching as her daughter and their friends followed it to the nearest hospital. the mustached scientist was wondering what in the world just happened. he has never seen a human being deliver such a primal scream, and the powerful aura he spread was unbelievable! he knows that, in the current situation, it would be morbid curiosity, but he simy couldn't help but wonder how his future research on son goku would go...

thats where he saw Jackie chun, completely frozen in terror.

"that boy...he is not normal." Dr. briefs told chun, who was too afraid to answer.

only one thought crossed roshi's mind:

"Who is goku?...what even is goku?"

 

...meanwhile, amidst the crowd, two persons watched the entire thing unfold. one was a young woman with puffy orange hair, the other a tall, hulking man with long silver hair under a baseball cap with a scar on his left cheek. both of them were wearing matching grey coats.

"this boy...who knew he would have such power." the woman fully said.

"what should we do?" asked the hulking man.

that's where a shady looking figure clad in black robes moved towards them.

"Its too significant not to ignore...i need him!" the figure sinisterly said in a raspy voice.

"but what about our main objective?" the woman asked the shady man.

" he is friends with briefs's daughter, the inventor of the dragon radar..." the shady man said. "...you should follow them to the capsule corps. building, find the radar, and take the boy with you."

"he is not necessary for our mission. he's not even a secondary objective." the hulking man dully said.

"no...consider this more as a personal favor." said the shady man, who revealed his face: that of an old, mustached, semi-bald man, wearing a Russian-style top hat with a red ribbon-like logo carrying two Rs.

"now, go!" ordered the sinister old man. "...do it, my children..."

"...for the red ribbon...

"...for science!"

END OF CHAPTER 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FINALLY!
> 
> been busy with other stuff lately. not only that, but I'm writing this chapter kmowing I'm gonna tackle my least favorite arc of all dragon ball next X(
> 
> and not only that, but the ending to this chapter and arc...i kinda feel it's very much a deus ex machina. X(
> 
> like, in the original, goku turns into a great ape, cause I dunno why, but toriyama forgot goku got his tail cut off!
> 
> now, with his tail staying cut off for good, I couldn't think of a logical solution to get out of roshi's technique...so I basically teased the super saiyan for 10 seconds.
> 
> I'm sorry! I thought I couldn't write myself in a corner like toriyama always does! X(
> 
>  
> 
> EDIT: modified details for one character
> 
> thank you for reading!


	12. budokai aftermath: dinner at the briefs

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> as everybody is dealing with the aftermath of the tenkaichi budokai, the gang reunites at the capsule Corp. building for dinner. afterwards, goku and bulma have a discussion.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Following is not for profit. it is strictly a fan work meant for personal amusement. Dragon ball, dragon ball z and dragon ball super is property of Akira toriyama, toyotaro, shueisha, Toei animation and shonen jump. please support the official release.
> 
> Some ideas from this fanfic are taken from Lawrence Simpson, AKA: Masakox of teamfourstar fame. check out his what-ifs, they're pretty interesting!

he finally woke up.

when he first opened his eyes, a blinding light made him blink multiple times. he let out a tired grona as his iris adapted to the strange, fluorescent light above him.

upon opening them completely, goku looked around him. he was in a white room, with all sorts of strange things he's never seen before around him. when he got his hearing back, a beep sound constantly repeated.

he then checked himself in the mirror in front of him. the monkey boy was on a long bed, lots of sheets covering his small body. a strange, transparent mask covered his mouth as his breathing resonated through it, and his index finger had a weird clip attached to it.

 

" huh? where am I?" thought goku, as he looked for his friends around the room.

that's where the door opened, and in came a tall, lanky man in an oversized doctor's coat. behind him was krillin, yamcha and bulma, who smiled upon seeing their friend awoke.

"goku!" krillin shouted as he ran towards the hospital bed that goku laid.

"we were so worried!" bulma said.

"hey, guys!" goku said, getting up from his bed, only for the doctor to stop him and pin him down the mattress.

" now, now, young man, you've been out cold for almost a whole day! you need some rest!" the doctor said.

" huh? what's going on? where am I?" goku asked.

"you're in the budokai island general hospital." the doctor answered. "and rest assured, you haven't been injured or anything. you just fainted and you didn't got up, so we took you in."

"i...fainted?" goku said.

"yeah!" krillin exclaimed. "Jacky chun trapped you in a weird technique where he sent you electric shocks. we all thought you were done for,but then, you screamed in anger, and this huge yellow aura surrounded you, and your hair turned gold and..."

goku only looked with utter confusion.

"basically, you lost the finals." bulma said.

" WHAT?? aw, man!" goku said.

" hey, don't feel bad, you did your best!" yamcha cheered. "you'll definitely win it someday!"

" yeah!" goku said, as he regained his confidence. "hey, bulma, your mom said she'll make dinner for us. can we go now?"

the gang only looked at goku with stupefaction. in some ways, what happened was even scarier than when hheturned into a giant ape! he completely lost it, and emitted a power that nobody who could feel ki has never felt before! and, after what seemed like an eternity, he woke up from his coma and already thinks about food!

bulma couldn't help but wonder just who...or rather, what goku really is.

"technically, you still need rest before going to dinner or doing anything else, really." said the doctor checking his notes...only for goku to get up and leave the building!

"H-HEY, GOKU, GET BACK HERE!" bulma shouted.

"i'm hungry!" said goku as he left the hospital.

later, the night fell, and the gang were at the capsule Corp. dining table, where a hungry goku was anxiously waiting his meal. bulma and yamcha looked at goku.

" hey, babe, I dunno about you, but i don't think goku's human." yamcha whispered to his girlfriend.

"no shit..." bulma answered sarcastically. "first, the tail. then, the whole "turning into a giant ape" thing. and now, his massive, anger-fueled energy outburst... no wonder dad is interested in studying him!"

"i definitely don't want to be on goku's bad side after what happened!" krillin added, to which yamcha and bulma only nodded.

" hey, bulma's mom, is dinner ready yet?" goku asked panchi, who was in the kitchen.

"soon, sweetie!" the blonde older woman shouted. " you'll see, I will make a grand feast for all of you!"

" alright, I can't wait!" goku exclaimed.

"goku, don't call my mom like that. call her Mrs. briefs, instead, ok?" bulma told the monkey boy, who nodded. then, Dr. briefs appeared.

" it seems we have a late guest." the scientist said, as none other than master roshi arrived in the dining room, to the joy of everyone.

"howdy, boys and girls!" master roshi greeted with a peace sign. "that was one hell of a tournament!"

"master, did we do well?" krillin asked.

"if you did well? you guys were even better than I expected!" the turtle hermit said. "yamcha did a lot of progress, too! it seems your baseball career hasn't stopped you from training."

"of course not!" yamcha said. " martial arts and baseball are my two biggest passions! I'm very lucky to be able to pursue both of them!"

"and you're lucky to have a girl who supports you!" bulma said as they kissed, making roshi jealous.

"sucks that I didn't win, though..." goku said, his head bowing down. that's where master roshi came up to him.

"losing a final is disappointing, I can tell you that." he said, goku listening intently. "but hear me out, goku: you must not let defeats wear you down! you must learn from them, and use it as motivation to improve yourself!"

"yes." goku said,looking at his fists. "that man, Jackie chun, he might be old, but he showed he was better than me by a margin!"

"there is always someone better, no matter what." master roshi said. "and that's what makes putting hard work and effort worth it: to be not only better than anyone else, but also a better you!"

"that's weird, chun said almost the exact same thing to me!" goku said.

"heh heh, no wonder: he studied with me a while ago, before I took your grandpa under my wing. that's also why he knows the kamehameha!" roshi explained. "and you fools actually thought he was me!" he said to yamcha and bulma, who giggled.

"well, the resemblances were rather uncanny!" bulma said.

"hahaha, that's because I basically raised him!" roshi laughed.

"I bet you made the same face he made when goku got angry!" krillin said, laughing.

upon hearing what krillin said, the hermit's expression turned completely serious, and looked at goku.

" indeed...that power...is unlike anything I've ever felt before!" he said, as he sat besides goku. "tell me, goku...what happened through your mind when Jackie chun put you in the bankoku bikkuri sho?"

upon hearing this question, goku looked on the floor, attempting to remember what he thought.

"well..." he said, looking focused. "...it really hurt, he kept sending me shockwaves after shockwaves. I tried everything I could to get out of it, but nothing worked. I thought I was gonna lose right there. then, I began having flashes of my life until this point. meeting bulma, going after the dragon balls, training with you...spending time with my grandpa..." as he said that, his face looked sad. "...and waking up at night...and finding him completely squashed...and be...being alone in the woods..." goku said, as he looked like he was a bout to cry.

"DINNER'S READY, EVERYONE!!" bulma's mom suddenly shouted as she brought a rolling table full of sumptuous dishes. there was everything: meat, cooked vegetables, bread, salad, soup, rice, cuscus, desserts, everything!

"FOOD!!" exclaimed a salivating goku, completely ignoring the fact that he was about to cry literally 2 seconds ago.

throughout the dinner, everybody got to talk to each other about several things. master roshi couldn't believe how hot bulma's mom actually was. Dr. briefs talked about his future studies on martial artists, to which krillin happily explained to the old scientist what he'd seen and been taught in the shaolin temple and with master roshi. finally, yamcha talked about his college baseball career, and how some major league scouts are looking at him, which is a good sign towards accomplishing his lifelong dream of turning pro.

bulma, meanwhile, looked dumbfounded, as everyone witnessed goku emptying almost all the dishes by himself! everybody looked in awe as they witnessed this Herculean feat being performed in front of their eyes. after goku was done, he tapped his belly and smiled, satisfied with his meals.

"oh my, such a big appetite!" bulma's mom said.

"my goodness, I wonder how science can explain that!" Dr. briefs joked.

"it was so good! thanks Mrs. briefs!" goku said to bulma's mom.

"you're welcome anytime, sweetie!" she said.

" yeah, he doesn't really have a home to go to...aside from his little house on the hill." bulma said.

goku sighed out of fatigue.

"his big appetite came back to bite him!" krillin said.

"im too tired to go home." goku said, almost sleeping.

"no wonder...you've been through a lot." master roshi said.

"he can stay here, if he wants." yamcha suggested.

"pff, as if I'm letting Tarzan here wander around the lab!" bulma said.

"well, I did say I wanted to make him my principal subject for my studies on martial artists." Dr. briefs said.

" yeah, and we're all pretty tired, too." krillin said.

"this is a lab, not a hotel!" bulma said.

"it's alright, bulma, I'll make sure they'll be comfortable at home!" panchi said.

"MOM!!" bulma shouted. "you can't be serious?"

"not me, I'm going back to my house." roshi said.

"and I pretty much live here now, so yeah." yamcha said.

" alright!" goku and krillin shouted, prompting bulma to sigh in exasperation.

"by the way, bulma, why don't you take our guests on a tour of the lab?" Dr briefs suggested.

" yeah, bulma! i wanna see all that crazy stuff that you make!" pleaded goku.

after some consideration, bulma reasoned that it wouldn't hurt to show them around the lab. "all right, I will. but don't touch anything!"

"promised!" goku said, locking his pinky finger with bulma's.

after dinner, bulma, as promised, showed the guests around the lab, goku, roshi and krillin amazed at all of the weird machinery and the various workbenches inside the vast complex that is the capsule Corp. lab.

"and this is where dad wants to study your martial arts skills." bulma said, pointing at a dark blue dome.

"what's that?" goku asked, for seemingly the hundred time since the tour began.

"its a training room." bulma explained, getting annoyed at the fact that, once again, she had to tell goku everything. "it contains many cameras placed at different angles, as well as body heat captors and all sorts of programs to measure your athletic prowess. the body heat captors are placed there so that he can capture ki heat signals."

"he can just try and sense our ki." goku said.

"uh, you do know that not everybody can sense ki, right?" krillin rhetorically asked.

"that's wrong." master roshi said. "everybody can sense ki, they just need to train their senses. Dr. briefs uses these captors in order to try to scientifically explain how ki works...i don't wanna burst his bubble, but there are some things science can't explain, and ki is one of them."

" and as a scientist, my job is to test it in order to see if it is explainable!" Dr. briefs sneaked into the conversation. "goku, you and your friend..."

"krillin!" the bald monk said.

"yes, krillin!" the old scientist exclaimed. "anyways, you and goku will step inside this chamber tomorrow. all you need to do is spar like you usually would. the scanners and captors will do the rest!"

" tomorrow?" krillin asked.

"well, it is getting late." master roshi said. "well, I'm off to my island!" the hermit said, as both he and his students waved goodbye to each other.

goku then thought of something.

"hey bulma!"

"what is it, goku?"

"can you show me the stuff that you invented?"

"sure, if you want." bulma said, as she went up towards her room, with goku following her there.

once they arrived in bulma's room, goku was surprised by how vast it actually was. there was a workbench on the right wall, her bed was in the deep left corner, with a TV set with a VCR facing the bed. around the work bench were all sorts of small tools that the purple-haired scientist built, and there was also her capsule-building kit.

bulma showed everything to goku and explained them in details. the monkey boy listened intently, even if he didn't understood what his friend said most of the time. what kept him reeled in into bulma's complex scientific descriptions, however, was just how passionate bulma looked and talked about all of this stuff. just as bulma didn't understood goku's love for martial arts at first before trying it herself and now getting it, goku too began understanding why bulma loved this science stuff: it allowed people to discover things that were previously unheard of. he was surprised that people are still discovering new things, even as time passes by.

and bulma looked so into it, it made goku smile. a smile that bulma noticed.

"what's wrong? why are you smiling?" bulma asked.

"heh heh...you're amazing, bulma!" goku said sincerely. bulma was surprised at the compliment that goku gave her.

" huh? what do you mean?"

"I mean, you're just so smart and reliable!" goku enthusiastically said. "you know lots of things I don't even know about! and you're always there to help people, too! sure, you can have a temper, at times...but, I dunno, it makes you charming...that's the right word, right?" he said, asking if it was the right word to use.

bulma couldn't answer. she was taken aback by Goku's words, and the fact that he's fully aware of what he's saying. she knew that goku is honest...stupidly honest, even. but now...

"d...did he just admitted he...likes me?" bulma thought In her head. I mean, it was obvious that both she and goku turned a liking to each other over their adventures for the dragon balls and during training with master roshi...but this is, like, so unusual for goku! and while she and yamcha obviously love each other, she never was complemented for her smarts and her knowledge in the way that goku just did.

thinking about it made her...blush?

" huh? what's wrong? you having a fever or something? you're all red!" asked goku innocently.

"no! nononono, it's just..." bulma said, brought back to reality by this goku-like question. "...thank you, goku! it's really nice of you!" she said to the monkey boy, who responded with a smile...that made bulma smile herself.

that made her lie down on her work bench, sighing in fatigued.

"tired?" goku asked.

" yeah, really..." bulma whined. 

"...goku, can I ask you something?"

"sure! what is it?" goku said.

"...did you feel lonely?"

" huh? what do you mean?" goku asked, curious.

" well, I mean, you never knew your parents, you only knew your grandpa, and then he died by the great ape's feet, leaving you by yourself..." bulma explained. "...did you feel alone? sad? powerless? were these feelings the ones you felt when you became angry at the tournament?"

goku didn't know how to answer to that tough question. bulma began regretting asking such a question to a kid.

but then, goku answered.

"yeah..." he simply said. "...but now, I met you, yamcha, krillin, master roshi, your parents...i don't feel so alone now!" he said with his trademark smile.

bulma looked at him. she smiled, then took his hand.

"I'm glad you're feeling alright, now." bulma comforted him. "I don't ever wanna see you in pain again."

"i don't wanna see my friends in pain again either!" goku said, assuring the purple-haired scientist. she then looked at her work bench.

"to tell you the truth...i felt lonely, too, before meeting you and yamcha." bulma admitted. " I was always busy working with dad in the lab...did I tell you I have a sister?"

"really?" goku said, surprised.

" yeah. her name is tights." bulma said.

"BWAHAHA!! HER NAME IS TIGHTS!!" goku laughed out loud.

"shut up..." bulma said, knocking her head on the desk. "...anyways, she's a writer. a pretty successful one, at that. she's also pretty popular, admired by many children around the world, and she's got many friends."

"ok, but what's that got to do with you being lonely?" goku asked.

" well...y'see, I admired my sister...and was jealous of her, too." bulma said, looking thoughtful. "I was jealous, because she had lots of friends and a husband that loved her for what she is. me? at school, I was popular, but I always felt that the girls I was friends with never really loved me, that they were only with me because of my status as the rich heir of capsule Corp., pretty much the most important company in the world. not to mention the boys were not my type at all! they only cared about how hot I was!"

"so you do have a fever!" goku said.

bulma didn't even want to correct the monkey boy. she simply laughed, confusing him. she then sighed and looked at herself in the mirror above her desk. "you're something else, yknow that?" bulma told goku.

"what do you mean?" he asked.

"i mean, you're such an innocent boy, who literally never saw the world before I took you with me. hell, you didn't even know what a girl looked like! and I have to teach you almost everything about life!"

"yeah, heh heh, sorry if I seem clueless!" goku said, scratching his head.

"no need to be sorry." bulma saod, facing the monkey boy. "in fact...it makes you charming, in a way!" she said, echoing what goku said about her character.

"hahaha, I see what you did there!" goku said, as both he and his purple-haired friend laughed together.

" you're really the first person to appreciate me for my person, and not just for my pretty face." bulma told goku.

" you're way more than just pretty, bulma!" goku innocently said, making bulma slightly blush.

"you're a good person, goku." she told him with a smile. "i like you."

"i like you too, bulma!" goku said.

bulma then blushed and looked down on her desk. "man, why did I told you all of this?..." she wondered out loud.

"maybe because you needed to tell me this." goku answered. "you needed someone who would listen to you when you wanna say something...just like you did when I told you about my life, just like you did when I ask all those questions."

bulma only looked at him. this boy, as naive and innocent as he can be, does surprise her with thoughtful analysis at times. roshi is right, he's more mature and smarter he looks. perhaps because of her influence, due to always asking questions to her. she smiled a warm smile towards the boy, who responded with a smile of his own.

" does that mean we're even better friends?" goku asks, surprising her scientist friend, not knowing what he meant by that.

"uh...yeah, I guess?" bulma answered hesitantly.

" ALRIGHT!!" goku shouted.

"shut up! everyone's sleeping at this hour!" bulma reprimanded him.

"oops, sorry, haha!" goku said, scratching his head.

" and you should go to sleep, too! it's late!" bulma suggested.

" yeah, alright..." goku said, yawning befor looking at bulma's bed. "hey, can i sleep with you tonight?"

"in your dreams, pal!" bulma answered, playfully putting goku in a headlock and messing up his already messy hair. "ask mom, she'll show you where you're going to sleep tonight."

"alright. thanks, bulma!" goku said, waving good-bye at her.

"good night!" bulma said.

when goku left her room, bulma sighed and jumped on her bed, exhausted. she wondered what the hell was wrong with her? why did she blush when goku complemented her? she couldn't possibly have a crush on a freaking kid, let alone goku! besides, she's with yamcha!

"pff, I should go to sleep." she sighed, covering herself with her blankets and turning around, facing the wall, falling asleep.

END OF CHAPTER

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so yeah, this is the first of a few slice of life chapters that I plan on writing in between arcs in order to flesh out the characters or the world of dragon ball. I hope you enjoyed it!
> 
> thank you for reading!


	13. the birds and the bees

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> goku freaks out when he lives through his first experience with puberty. bulma then reluctantly agree to have "the talk" with goku.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Following is not for profit. it is strictly a fan work meant for personal amusement. Dragon ball, dragon ball z and dragon ball super is property of Akira toriyama, toyotaro, shueisha, Toei animation and shonen jump. please support the official release.
> 
> Some ideas from this fanfic are taken from Lawrence Simpson, AKA: Masakox of teamfourstar fame. check out his what-ifs, they're pretty interesting!

the shining rays of the sun covered west city in its entirety, as the birds sang, the cars rolled down the road and goku woke up refreshed and relaxed. he looked outside by the window, bathing into the beauty of the mountains in the distance, watching the birds fly and the squirrels going nuts. while he do miss his house on top of mount paozu, he thought that bulma's house, despite being needlessly big according to him (forgetting that it was a lab, first and foremost), was not so bad, either. it got everything: comfortable beds, a TV (at least, that's what he remembers bulma calling the weird box with people in it.), a place dedicated to training in the martial dome (even though it was actually for science purposes) and, most importantly, lots of food!

then, he remembered that today was the day where he and krillin will train in Dr.briefs's dome, as buma's dad wanted to know how can martial artists achieve the superhuman feats of athleticism that they're capable of, as well as study ki.

however, to goku, it was just another opportunity to train. and he wanted to train, as he was motivated to get stronger in order to beat Jackie chun and win the next tenkaichi budokai after coming this far.

then, he heard some loud music coming from bulma's room, which was a couple of steps from his.

"what's going on in bulma's room?" goku wondered,as he left his and walkers towards hers, the music becoming louder and clearer.

the funky dance music was loud enough for goku to open the door without bulma hearing it. goku was about to ask what she was doing when she saw what was going on: inside bulma's TV was a woman with short, blue hair dressed in a red leotard doing aerobics while giving instructions. bulma, meanwhile, had her hair tied up in a ponytail, a light purple sweatband on her forehead, light purple sweat wristbands, light purple leg warmers and a pink, high-cut leotard. she was dancing and moving along with the instructor, kicking, stepping, lunging and swinging her hips to the funky beat as goku looked with curiosity. he still holds the opinion that this "aerobics" training that bulma does is ineffective in getting stronger compared to martial arts, and she wonders why she finds it interesting.

yet...it seemed he couldn't keep his eyes off of his lavender-haired friend. the movements and swaying of her hips and the leotard's high-cut emphasising the large roundness of their curves drew his eyes there. he didn't know what was happening to him. he feels...drawn to her. like a magnet.

this feeling only increased when the aerobics dancing portion of the video was over and bulma started the "buns of steel" and "thunder thighs" sections. goku was even more mesmerized upon seeing bulma squeezing her glutes and thigh muscles with squats, leg lifts, kickbacks and donkey kicks. the bottom of her leotard emphasised her gluteous maximus in a flattering way, making goku feel funny inside.

after the cool-down stretches, the video finally ended. bulma breathed heavily after all the efforts she put into getting herself in shape. she was sweating all around, the sweat making her assets shine.

"whew, I'm burning right now!" bulma said, feeling her sore thighs and glutes. " heh, can't say they don't give you thunder thighs and rock-hard buns, tho!" she said, gently tapping her thighs and butt and having a proud look on her face.

when goku saw bulma tapping her butt, he suddenly had a very uncomfortable feeling in his pants. he then took a look inside them...only to find something so horrifying, it made him as pale as a ghost!

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!"

bulma was startled. she turned around and saw goku running around in her room, scared shitless.

" goku? what are you doing here? what's going on?" bulma asked the monkey boy.

"Oh my god, bulma, it's horrible!" goku said, terrified. " I heard this loud music coming from your room. then, I-i-i watched you do this "aerobics" training, and...and i-i-i dunno what kind of spell you put on me, but I was hypnotized and, suddenly, my pee-pee became huge!! what's happening to me?!?"

"...oh no..." bulma only facepalmed and groaned. she couldn't believe it...goku just had his first erection by watching her workout! and, of course, knowing goku, he is completely clueless about anything regarding puberty and sex, so he freaks out...

" so? can you tell me what's happening to me?!" goku asked, still freaked out.

...And of course, she's the one who will teach him all about it!

" ...man, your cluelessness can be really frustrating at times!" bulma groaned.

"but I thought you said it was charming." goku said.

" WELL, NOW I TAKE THAT BACK!" bulma shouted in anger.

"please, bulma, you're a scientist, you know alot of things!" goku pleaded.

" IT DOESN'T TAKE A SCIENTIST TO KNOW WHAT'S HAPPENING TO YOU!!" bulma shouted.

"please! I'm scared!" goku said, praying in front of bulma.

bulma physically and mentally facepalms herself, wondering what to do, seeing that goku was stubborn as a mule. she then closed the door behind them, then went to her bookshelf. there, she found a book on human anatomy.

"come here, goku." she ordered the monkey boy as she showed her the book. "this is a book about human anatomy. all of your answers are written in it!"

"anatomy? like my grandpa's acupuncture books?" goku asked.

"yes, but it goes deeper than that." bulma said, flipping the pages until it lands on the section covering the male sexual organs. "there, here's a penis."

"a penis?" goku said.

"it's the true name of a "pee-pee"." bulma explained. "now, the scientific reason why your penis grows is..." she then slams her head on her desk. "...god, I can't believe I'm teaching you this!"

"sorry If I'm making this hard on you." goku apologised.

" hey, you wanna know what's happening to you or not?" bulma rhetorically asked. "anyways, the scientific reason why your penis grows is that...you know, when you're fighting, your blood flows at a fast rate and you're having a rush of adrenaline, right?"

" yeah?" goku answered.

"well..." bulma breathed hard as she blushed, trying to find a way to explain it to the monkey boy. "...all of that blood goes right into the vein inside your penis right here." she said, pointing at the veins. "and when it's all there, your penis...gets...hard."

"all of my blood?" goku asked.

" well, not all of it, but a good part, yes." bulma said. "don't worry, goku, it's completely normal. you're at the age where boys usually starts the growing process called puberty."

" puberty?" goku asked.

"yes." bulma answered positively. " that's when you grow big and strong, your hair starts growing on your face and your body, and your voice deepens. but that's not what were talking about, here."

"why does all this blood goes in my penis?" goku asked.

"well...oh my gosh..." bulma blushed. he really was making this hard on her! "...it happens when you...you see something...something that...excites you." she explained, waving her arms around.

"excites me, like fighting?" goku asked.

"...its...different...something that excites you...something...sexy." bulma was embarrassed at what she was saying.

"sexy? what does that mean?" goku asked.

"look..." bulma sighed, thinking if a way to explain it to the 12-year old boy. "...you watched me workout earlier, right?"

" yeah." goku answered honestly.

"well...did you...feel funny when you watched me workout? did you find me...attractive?" bulma asked. I mean, she knew she was attractive, but still, it was pretty embarrassing to ask that.

" well, i had this weird feeling like i was attracted to you like a magnet." goku admitted. "I felt like a fire inside me was ready to burst. especially when you worked your legs and your butt."

"goku, you don't have to be so honest!" groaned bulma. "keep those things to yourself, it's really personal!"

"okay..." goku said.

" ...so, yeah, when a boy your age sees a beautiful woman, he...he gets... an erection. so yeah, that's why your pee-pee grew. its completely normal." bulma explained.

"okay. but what should I do to shrink it back to normal?" goku asked.

"oh my god, I can't explain this..." bulma whined to herself, trying to find a solution. "...you just need to relax." she said, not wanting to explain the "other way" of "relaxing" yourself.

"oh, that's it?" goku said, relaxing. he then checked his pee-pee, and there it was, completely normal again! "ahh, cool! thanks, bulma!"

bulma then thought of something. something that might affect goku in the future...

"yknow what, come here for a sec!" bulma ordered, to which goku complied. bulma then flipped the pages to go to the section covering the female body parts. "now, you remember when...oh god...when you found out I had...no balls?" bulma said, blushing.

"huh uh?" goku nodded.

" well, as you found out, girls don't have a penis." bulma explained. "they have a hole beneath the legs called a vagina."

"a hole? who dug you that hole, bulma?" goku asked.

"no one, goku." bulma answered. "girls have it since birth."

"oh." goku found all these informations confusing. "but wait, how do you pee?"

"look, goku, that's not important! it's already pretty hard for me to explain this to you, so how about you let me finish?" bulma said, annoyed. "now, the main reason why you boys have a penis..."

"i know that! it's to pee!" goku exclaimed, prompting bulma to mentally facepalm.

" no, listen..." bulma tried to find a way to explain sex to goku. "...remember when I told you that marriage is when a man and a woman wants to spend their entire lives together?"

" yeah?" goku said.

"well that's because the man and the woman loves each other very, very much...and this is the most important thing to learn when dealing with what I'm about to explain to you." bulma warned goku.

" okay..." goku listened intently.

" when a man and a woman loves each other very, very much, and are married..." bulma emphasised these words, so that goku understands that this is the most important part of it. "...they can express their love for each other...by doing a ritual...called sex" 

"a ritual? to cast a spell powered by love? like in the fairy tales?" goku asked innocently.

"there's nothing magical at all...but it is fueled by love, yes." bulma explained, putting emphasis on the word love. "basically, it involves lots of contact and..."

"they're sparring?"

"no goku! they..." bulma was about to reprimand him, but then, she realised that sex and fighting does have a lot in common... "...anyways, it basically boils down to the man putting his penis...into his lover's vagina." she said, blushing.

"he WHAT?!?" goku looked disgusted.

"look, I know it sound disgusting...but it really isn't!" bulma assured the freaked out monkey boy. "it's actually really pleasant."

"b-but wouldn't the man hurt the woman by doing that?" goku asked.

" well..."bulma tried to keep her cool. "...if the woman hasn't done it before, then yes, it will, at first...but after that, it won't."

"oh..."goku said. "so i can do this, but only when I get married?"

"yes, that is the most important part!" bulma repeated. "and you need to be an adult, too."

"you mean a grown up?"

"yes!" bulma responded.

"then that means it won't be after a really long time, since I never really thought about who should I spend my entirely life with. and i dont plan on thinking about it." goku reasoned.

"that's a good thing, goku!" bulma exclaimed, relieved at goku finally using his logic. " you have your whole life in front of you, so take your time, do your kung fu stuff and enjoy your youth!"

"right!" goku said, clenching his fist s and smiling.

"oh, I almost forgot..." bulma said "...sex is how you make babies."

" really?" goku was surprised. he thought that mother goose gave children to dads and moms everywhere. bulma nodded when he asked that question. "but bulma! how is it even possible?"

"that's a topic for when you get older, goku!" bulma answered. "now go! dad is waiting for you at the training room!"

"alright! thanks bulma! I owe you one!" goku said.

"always glad to help you!" bulma responded. "oh, and goku?"

" yeah?"

"this stays between us. don't mention anything to anyone...and don't peek inside other people's rooms. it's creepy."

" okay!" goku said, as he and bulma waved goodbye at each other and the monkey boy left for the training room, where krillin and Dr. briefs were waiting for him.

"hey, goku, where have you been, buddy?" krillin asked.

"ah, nowhere. I'm slow to wake up!" goku said.

"indeed! you slept a whole day at the hospital not too long ago!" Dr. briefs said. " I hope you are full of energy, young man, cause I want you and krillin to spar like you usually do inside the chamber."

"sure, no problem!" goku said, ready for a fight.

"don't get cocky, goku! I'm not gonna hold back!" krillin said.

"i won't hold back either!" goku answered.

"alright, what are we waiting for? let's enter the chamber!" Dr. briefs exclaimed.

"yosh!" goku exclaimed. "but before we go..." goku said, making krillin and dr. briefs turn around to face him. that's where they heard the monkey boy's stomach gargle like crazy.

"...can I eat breakfast?"

both krillin and Dr. briefs comically fell down on the ground.

END OF CHAPTER.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so yeah, this just happened...
> 
> next chapter, we'll try and find a way to explain ki and how train g can make one do superhuman feats!
> 
> sounds easy, right?
> 
>  
> 
> right?
> 
>  
> 
> thank you for reading!


	14. the menace from the shadows

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dr. briefs makes avant-garde discoveries concerning the exploits of martial artists thanks to goku and krillin's collaboration. but, alas, the celebrations won't last long...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Following is not for profit. it is strictly a fan work meant for personal amusement. Dragon ball, dragon ball z and dragon ball super is property of Akira toriyama, toyotaro, shueisha, Toei animation and shonen jump. please support the official release.
> 
> Some ideas from this fanfic are taken from Lawrence Simpson, AKA: Masakox of teamfourstar fame. check out his what-ifs, they're pretty interesting!

"TEIAAHH!!" screamed krillin as he delivered a swift kick that goku barely avoided. then goku answered back with a spinning back fist. but krillin sees it coming and blocks it easily.

the two boys continued sparring at a high level inside the walls of Dr. briefs's training dome. the cameras looking at the boys had scanners that analysed every movement they made. attacged to the pillars around the room were heat captors that caught any and all signals of their bodies heating up as they used ki. outside the dome, Dr. briefs himself was looking at the action, the cameras transmitting the images live from his computer.

he couldn't help but replay the images again and again, not believing what the numbers on the screen showed. the boys were moving at an average of almost 50km/h in only one step! not even the fastest runner in the world was capable of such a feat! the speed of their punches and kicks were also above the average speed of the fastest boxer and the fastest kicker! for the record, the fastest officially recorded punch was 45km/h. goku and krillin punched between 50-55 km/h, with goku even reaching 60 at one point! and when they jump vertically, it's almost 10 feet! not even basketball players can jump that high!

"what sorts of training did that roshi fellow imposed on them?" Dr. briefs wondered in his head.

"hey, Dr. briefs!" krillin screamed at the screen that showed Dr. briefs's face, bursting the good doctor's bubble. "can we do something else? we've been fighting for a while!"

"what, you don't wanna continue?" goku asked his bald friend.

"sure, I would, it's just that I also wanna show him ki manipulation!" krillin answered.

"uh yes! yes! I'm sorry, I was lost in my thoughts!" Dr. briefs apologized. "your physical feats are out of this world, I must say! and to think you are able to achieve this by only training!"

"can we do ki manipulation?" krillin asked.

"Sure! do what you want!" the scientist answered with a thumbs up. actually, it was the part he was anticipating the most. it is a personal challenge for him to demystify religious and spiritual ideas and myths made popular by movies and television. a "mythbuster", if you will!

and the Buddhist concept of life force, or "ki", is his present subject. ever since he saw the lasers coming out of goku and Jackie Chun's hands at the torunament, he absolutely wanted to know how they were able to do that. now was his chance at finding out how ki works.

"so, what shall we do?" krillin asked goku.

" well, the only ki manipulation I know is for the kamehameha." goku said.

" yeah, me too." krillin said. "alright, we'll do the kamehameha."

"cool! but where can we do it? I don't wanna break the dome by accident!" goku said.

"don't worry boys!" Dr. briefs said as he pressed a button, making oversized targets appear in front of goku and krillin. "just shoot on these targets!"

upon seeing the targets, the two kids closed their eyes and their fists and concentrated, breathing steadily as auras appeared around them.

while Dr. briefs couldn't see their auras due to his lack of sensing ki, he saw their body heat increasing as they charged their ki. the average body heat of a human being is around 37° Celsius. goku and krillin, as they were charging, had their body heat increasing to 40, 45, 50...its still rising!

"ka...me..." both boys cupped their hands together and prepare to shoot at the targets. Dr. briefs found out something incredible: not only did their body heat reached the 80-90 plus ° Celsius Mark at lightning speed, it seemed that their entire body heat was concentrated in their hands!

"ha...me..." blinding rays of light burster out of the boys hands as the kamehameha was fully charged. the heat was way beyond what a thermometer can record!

"HAAAAA!!!"

with a mighty shout, goku and krillin shot the targets, obliterating them to pieces, to the amazement of Dr. briefs. it's as if they projected all that heat towards a single point! and, when they finished shooting, their body temperatures returned to normal.

"fascinating... very fascinating..." Dr. briefs murmured as he wrote down what he saw on pieces of paper. behind him, bulma appeared, wearing a lab coat.

"hey dad!" bulma greeted. "how's the experiment going?"

"perfectly!" Dr. briefs exclaimed. "the discoveries I made are very fascinating. here, check these notes!"

as bulma checked them out, goku and krillin exited the training dome.

"hey, bulma! what's up?" goku asked his lavender-haired friend.

"we are reading the results of the experiment." bulma answered. "I have to say, this ki manipulation thing is really impressive!"

" yeah, it's super strong!" goku said. "how come you never tried it yourself, during our training with roshi?"

"i did try, remember?" bulma said.

" yeah, you looked so dumb!" krillin laughed.

"not as dumb as you when I was beating you at the tournament!" bulma responded, making krillin groan.

however, while the gang was laughing together, one of the scientists in the lab looked at the gang, as if she was eavesdropping on their conversation. she had puffy orange hair. she pressed on her left ear, where a speaker with a wireless Mic was hidden beneath her mane of hair.

"losan, can you hear me?" the woman whispered. "I found the boy. and some notes that the boss might be interested in."

"roger...heading to objective, then." the hulking, silver-haired man named losan whispered, as he walked along the corridors...that led to bulma's room, where the dragon radar was.

"this training made me hungry." goku said, caressing his stomach.

" what? are you kidding me?" krillin said. "you just ate breakfast not too long ago!"

"yeah, but I'm hungry!" goku said, going to the kitchen. krillin then headed to the living room. this meant only bulma and Dr. briefs alone, in the lab.

"here." bulma said, giving the notes to her father. "we must keep it a secret."

"dont worry, dear!" the good doctor said. "they'll be safe and sound in my hands!" he exclaimed.

bulma then left to her room. the puffy haired scientist from earlier saw her going away.

"hey, losan!" she said, calling her partner on the codec. "hurry up! she's coming to her room!"

"roger, rubi." losan answered, carrying the dragon radar in his hands.

meanwhile, rubi checked her surroundings. she was completely alone with the doctor in the lab. she then slipped some powder out of her coat, stealthily approaching the doctor.

Dr. briefs was ecstatic! finally, he has demystified the secrets of martial arts masters! and, who knows,maybe further studies can lead to humanity learning how to control ki themselves. who knows, maybe ki can become a new source of energy!

however, he slowly began falling asleep. he wondered why, as he wasn't that tired. hen, suddenly, he fell down on the floor, sleeping like a log. behind the doctor was rubi smirking, as she blew sleeping powder in the air to put the doctor asleep, all while wearing an oxygen mask in order to not fall asleep herself!

after picking up the notes, she went after her next objective: goku.

goku was making a huge sandwich for dinner when a female scientist arrived in the kitchen.

"hey! you work in the lab!" goku said.

"yes!" the lady smiled. "ooh, you're making quite the sandwich!" she said, looking at goku's dinner.

"yeah! I'm quite hungry after training." goku said.

"you know what would make your sandwich taste even better?" the lady scientist asked goku.

"huh?"

"there! see these spices?" the lady showed the "spices" in her hands. "they're a super rare type of spices! and they taste so good on a sandwich!"

"really?" goku said.

"yes! here, have a sniff!" she said, before blowing the powder on goku's nose, immediately grabbing him and putting her hand on his face, forcing him to inhale the sleeping powder. as he fell asleep, Rubi contacted losan.

"i got him!" rubi said. "you got the radar?"

"affirmative." losan confirmed.

"then let's get the hell outta here!" she said, running with a sleeping goku in her arms.

back on the second floor, losan ran as fast a he could. he passed by bulma, who was surprised at the speed of the running employee.

but hold on...

...thats not an employee of capsule Corp!

she then proceeded to enter her room upon seeing that the door was already opened! she then checked her room, and her heart sank when she found out the dragon radar was missing!

krillin was watching a baseball game on TV when he saw a female scientist run out of the building...with goku in her arms! krillin immediately jumped out of the couch and ran towards the kidnapper!

meanwhile, bulma, upon going down the staircases shouting for her dad, saw him sleeping on the floor. she grabbed him and shook him hard, waking him up.

"uhwhawhawha?" Dr. briefs murmured as he woke up.

"dad! somebody stole the dragon radar!" bulma said to him.

" WHAT??" dr. brieds shook his head in disbelief. however, while he was shaking his head, he saw something crucial was missing. "oh nonononono!!"

"the notes!!" bulma said, upon realising why his dad was freaking out. " they stole the notes, too??"

"and they kidnapped goku!!" bulma's mom said.

" WHAT??" bulma and Dr. briefs couldn't believe it.

"yes, it's true!" panchi said. "I saw krillin chasing a woman dressed in a capsule Corp. coat, and the woman had goku in her arms!"

"where are they now?" bulma asked her mom.

" they were heading towards the parking!" panchi answered, pointing towards the front door.

Dr briefs and bulma wasted no time, and ran towards the parking lot. there, she saw a yellow Honda CRX convertible flying pass them, with krillin following them before stopping from exhaustion.

"krillin, is goku in that car?" bulma asked the bald monk.

"YES!! WE MUST SAVE HIM!!" krillin shouted.

bulma quickly popped out a black helicopter from her capsule case. she then entered it along with her dad and krillin and off they go on the pursuit of the thieves's yellow Honda!

the black helicopter Is the fastest of all helicopters, and it caught up easily with the kidnappers.

"bulma, look at the logo on the man's cap!" Dr. briefs pointed at the emblem on Losan's baseball cap.

"no way! they're from the red ribbon!" bulma exclaimed.

"red ribbon? you mean the terrorist group?" krillin said.

meanwhile, in the car, both rubi and losan shat their pants when they saw the helicopter.

"damn it! take them down!" the puffy-haired orangehead ordered her baseball cap-wearing, silver-haired partner.

"consider it done!" losan said, as he pointed his fist at the helicopter. then, suddenly, his fist launched like a rocket! and it hit the helicopter, catching the gang off-guard, before returning and attaching itself to his arm again.

"woah! did you see that?" krillin said.

"yeah! he shot his fist like a rocket!" Dr. briefs said.

"thank God the chopper suffered only minor damages!" bulma said, regaining control of it. "krillin, blast him!"

"right!" krillin said, powering up his kamehameha while leaning on the side. losan saw him.

"hah! you wanna taste my rocket punch again?" losan taunted, as he fired his rocket punch again.

"HAAAA!!!" krillin fired the kamehameha towards losan, disintegrating his rocket punch and hitting him dead on, obliterating one side of his body, revealing something that shocked the gang: there was no flesh on losan. instead, there was complex circuitry and mechanical parts!

"an...android?" bulma and her dad said at the same time, stupefied.

"losan!" rubi shouted upon seeing how badly losan was damaged.

enraged, the Android fired his other rocket punch. this time, it was a critical hit, blowing up the helicopter's blades and making it spin, allowing the red ribbon officers to escape with goku in the trunk.

bulma, her dad and krillin managed to jump out of the falling helicopter in time, carrying parachutes on them.

once they landed, they looked at the car going away in the distance.

" No!! goku is gone!! damn it!!" krillin swore as he punched the ground in frustration.

" and the dragon radar too!" bulma said.

"didn't you create multiple dragon radars?" Dr. briefs asked his daughter.

"huh? oh, right!" bulma remembered now. she then popped an SUV out of her capsule box and immediately drove back to capsule Corp.

"so let me get this straight." krillin said. "you built a dragon ball locator?" 

"yeah." bulma said. "and, since those red ribbon guys stole it, that means they're after the dragon balls, too!"

"oh god, if the red ribbon get their hands on them..." said krillin, horrified at the implications.

" and the notes on ki! if it falls in the wrong hands, it's gonna be disastrous!" Dr. briefs said.

"but..." bulma then thought of goku. "...why would they kidnap goku? what do they wanna do with him?" that question is what everyone asked to themselves in their heads.

"nonetheless, we need to save goku!" krillin said.

"easier said than done!" bulma said. "the only way to find where they put goku is by finding the dragon balls before them, and intercept them and interrogate one of their soldiers...god, it's gonna be hard!" bulma whined.

while bulma and krillin were busy wondering what to do, Dr. briefs began analysing what happened.

"kidnapping goku...a short while after the incident at the budokai...stealing the notes on ki...the fact that one of the kidnappers was an android...

 

...an android...

...an android!

" ANDROID!!" Dr. briefs suddenly shouted, startling bulma and krillin.

"dad, are you ok?" bulma asked.

"That guy was an android!!" he shouted.

"yeah?" krillin said, not sure where was the good doctor was going.

"wait..." bulma then thought about it. "...how the hell are the red ribbon able to build fully functional androids? in fact, how are they able to have such advanced scientific knowledge? the technology to create androids isn't even available to the public, only to universities and military complexes!"

"and nobody managed to build a fully functional android!" krillin said.

"...you're wrong..." Dr. briefs said.

"huh?" bulma and krillin looked at the doctor with curiosity.

"...there is only one man who managed to do it..." Dr. briefs said, looking worried. "...and if my assumptions are correct...oh no..." he looked even more worried.

"what's wrong, dad?" bulma was beginning to be worried. "who is it?"

"...bulma... goku is in great danger... the world is in great danger! we must stop him and the red ribbon!" Dr. briefs said, only looking forward. "he's part of their group...and knowing him, he kidnapped goku and stole the notes concerning ki not for the ribbon...but for his own nefarious ambition!"

" Who, dad? Who? and what's he gonna do to goku?" bulma started getting nervous. she and krillin needed the answer!

"a man I never thought I'd hear from again..." he only answered.

"who??" krillin asked desperately.

"my old college rival...Gero di talia!!"

END OF CHAPTER

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> you know what's weird?
> 
> the fact that people seemingly forgot that ki exists when Z started.
> 
> i mean, they fucking witnessed kamehamehas and tenshinhan and piccolo obliterating the ring with ki blasts!
> 
> but when DBZ started "Nope! just magic tricks!XD"
> 
> also, if you're a cycling fan, you're probably laughing at gero's full name.
> 
> also, I thought that, since android 17 and 18's real names are lapis and lazuli, he other androids should be named after jewels and stones, too.
> 
> thank you for reading! any comment and feedback is appreciated!


	15. kame house under pressure!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> bulma and krillin starts their journey to save goku from the claws of the red ribbon, bringing yamcha alongside them. their first stop Is at kame house, where they and master roshi gets to meet the terrorist group for the first time...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Following is not for profit. it is strictly a fan work meant for personal amusement. Dragon ball, dragon ball z and dragon ball super is property of Akira toriyama, toyotaro, shueisha, Toei animation and shonen jump. please support the official release.
> 
> Some ideas from this fanfic are taken from Lawrence Simpson, AKA: Masakox of teamfourstar fame. check out his what-ifs, they're pretty interesting!

A YEAR AGO

the waves rose and fell on the big blue sea surrounding the remote island where the turtle hermit, muten roshi, built his kame house on.

the hermit was sleeping comfortably in his bed when his alarm clock went off. he got up from his bed, stretched his old, worn out limbs and went to the kitchen to make breakfast.

he passed by many black and white photos, all of them containing him at different points of his life:

-him, as a child, photographed with his parents and sister, all dressed in traditional Asian garb.

\- him, still as a child, winning the gold medal at a martial arts competition, wearing a gi.

\- his teenage self, sporting a cool hairdo, sunglasses and a traditional Chinese kung fu robe, alongside shen, his friend and rival.

\- a now bald roshi and shen, posed alongside their master, mutaito.

-roshi and a beautiful woman with long hair, holding each other's hands, dressed in wedding garb.

\- roshi, all alone, now sporting wrinkles on his face.

-another solo picture, this time, he looked older...

and older...

...and older...

...and older...

upon looking at these pictures, roshi couldn't help but bow his head down and look sad...depressed, even.

 

he felt lonely...

sure, he's not completely alone on kame island, as he had his pet, the talking sea turtle, as well as any passing sea creatures and birds...

...but deep down, he felt lonely...

everybody now calls him a pervert, what with him having so much porn at home, "watching" aerobics classes and videos and trying to cope feels of a woman's breasts or butt...

...but what they didn't know is that roshi gets perverted as a mean to cope with his loneliness... to the point that he became addicted to it...

...and roshi knew that it was not satisfying at all...

...he missed her...dearly...

...he built this house in the middle of nowhere for her and him. they wolud travel together, spar together, do anything together. he missed watching her doing aerobics and her giving him sexy winks everytime she turned around and faced him, and the endless nights they spend together...

...and then, on that fateful day...

...she was gone...

...because of his choices...

...and now, he will be stuck alone, on this island, forever...

suddenly, something crashed through the roof of kame house and hit roshi right in the dick!! as he crumbles down in pain, the turtle arrived to see what's going on.

"are you alright, master?" the turtle asked the hermit.

"IF I'M ALRIGHT? I'LL NEVER BE ABLE TO HAVE KIDS NOW!! OW!!" roshi complained, grabbing his balls in pain.

"you, reproducing? oh, the horror!" the turtle snarkily said.

"Shut up!" roshi exclaimed. the turtle then checked the object that hit roshi's testicles. a glowing light came from the rubbles on the floor, prompting the turtle to pick it up with his mouth.

"a dragon ball?" roshi said upon seeing what his pet had in his mouth. "that's the second year in a row that one has crashed in my house! guess I've become lucky!"

NOWADAYS...

right above the ocean, a black helicopter was flying fast, heading south east. inside the chopper was bulma driving it, wearing her red tank top and white short shorts. joining her in the chopper was krillin and yamcha. krillin was determined to save his best friend goku, while the former desert bandit looked nervous.

"uh, honey..." yamcha called his girlfriend. "...dont you think it should be better if I stayed at capsule co-"

"so what, or else your baseball career would be in shambles if you die or get seriously injured?" bulma interrupted, annoyed. "stop caring about yourself for a minute! goku's in danger!"

"b-b-but goku can easily take care of himself!" yamcha said.

"we still need to save him!" bulma wanted none of yamcha's excuses. "and you and krillin are the only ones I can trust, so help us instead of complaining!"

"geez..." yamcha laid his head on the chopper's wall.

"so, according to the radar, the closest dragon ball is at kame house?" krillin asked.

"yes. that's why we're going there." bulma answered. "if my calculations are correct, the red ribbon is gonna go there first. it will be a good chance to find out where they took goku."

"how can you be so sure that they'll go to kame house first?" krillin asked.

"didn't you realised something about where goku's kidnappers went when we lost them?" bulma asked the bald monk.

"realise what?"

"they went towards the northeast." bulma said. "and, since west city is in the northeast, too. and, starting from west city, the closest dragon ball according to the radar is completely south from there, right where kame house is! since the red ribbon doesn't know how to make dragon radars, they are pretty much forced to use the one they stole from us to come here. and, since their base is seemingly somewhere in the northeast, too, that means that the closest dragon ball from their starting point is the one at kame house!"

 

"whoa!" krillin tried to process all this information in his head.

" what's this kame house you're talking about?" yamcha asked.

"that's where master roshi lives." krillin answered.

" really? he lives in the middle of the ocean?" yamcha wondered.

"well, he's called the turtle hermit for a reason!" bulma said. "there, we've arrived!" she said, pointing at the house in the middle of the tiny island surrounded by the big blue ocean.

"how the hell did he managed to build a house on such tiny pieces of land?" yamcha wondered as he looked at the hermit's crib. the helicopter landed on the beach, and once the trio left it, it popped back into being a capsule again, with bulma putting it back in her case.

" oh, you're master roshi's new students!" the turtle said, recognising krillin and bulma. "and yamcha, too!" he said, looking at the former desert bandit.

"is the hermit here?" yamcha asked.

" that chopper of yours sure makes a lot of noise!" master roshi said, coming out of the house. "what brings you here, young ones?"

"goku has been kidnapped by the red ribbon army." krillin said.

"the red ribbon army? what would they want with goku?" roshi was surprised. "not that goku is in any danger or anything. he can definitely take care of himself!"

"we're all in danger!" bulma said. "they also stole one of my dragon radar!"

"a what now?" roshi asked.

"this." bulma showed the old man the dragon radar. "it allows us to locate dragon balls."

" oh, genius!" roshi exclaimed. "but if they have one, that means they're after them...very troubling, indeed!"

"and I believe that they will come find the dragon ball here first." bulma said.

"indeed, there was a dragon ball that crashed in my house last year." roshi said. "I assume you're here to claim it before they do?"

"actually, we'll let them take it!" bulma said with a sly smile, confusing everybody. "alright, here's the plan..."

 

a while later...

 

deep beneath the sea, fishes of all shapes and size were swimming freely in all sorts of directions, without a single care in the world.

suddenly, one such fish was swimming at a blistering pace, as if he was avoiding something. the other fishes looked to see what was going on, thinking a shark was passing by...only to find what seemed like two huge whales coming their way! all the fishes around the area quickly dispatched themselves from the wales's way.

 

but in reality, what the fishes considered whales were actually two u-boat submarines. more specifically, one was a type VIIb U-48, known for its great agility and fast speeds. the other was a type XIV, a larger version nicknamed the "milk cow" due to its main function as a resupply unit, providing food, ammo and fuel for the other submarines.

onboard both the U-48 and the milk cow were soldiers belonging to the terrorist group known as the "red ribbon", recognisable by their beige military coats and the red ribbon emblem with their initials written in the middle. inside the U-48 was a huge command center, where multiple crewmen took care of the multiple tasks required to make the sub work. on a platform in the middle of the room stood a tall, well-built young man with green eyes and short, military-cut blonde hair underneath his commander cap. he had a smug, mischievous look in his eyes as he looked at a big, plasma TV screen that showed the surface in real time thanks to a camera installed on the fin of the sub. on the background of the screen was the island where kame house was, with the house itself appearing as a silhouette In the distance.

"general blue, we are approaching the target." a fat soldier with a mustache told the blonde man. general blue then looked at the dragon radar in his palm: the same dragon radar that was stolen from the capsule Corp. headquarters. once he saw the orange blip in the middle of its map, confirming that they indeed have arrived at Destination, general blue looked at the screen in front of him.

"Prepare to surface!" he ordered.

 

soon after, the two submersibles rose from the ocean in all of their lengthy glory. once they've approached kame island, they dropped the anchor and a battalion led by General blue exited their subs and surrounded kame house. then, master roshi came out, looking nonchalant.

"well hello there, strangers!" roshi greeted them. "what brings you here, on my island? you clearly don't understand what being a hermit means!"

"i have no time for games, gramps!" general blue said in an authoritative tone. "we know that you have the dragon ball inside your house!" he said, showing the stolen dragon radar with an orange blip in the middle.

roshi noticed it, and immediately changed his attitude to a more serious one.

"oh ho!" he shouted. "indeed, I do have a dragon ball..."

"i suggest you peacefully surrender it to us, if you dont want us to prematurely end your life...whatever's left of it, anyways!" blue said menacingly.

"sure, I'll gladly give it to you..." roshi said, silently snapping his fingers behind his back.

meanwhile, at the backyard of kame house, the soldiers stationed there noticed something coming their way at high speed! it was a spinning turtle shell! it spun like a frisbee as it knocked out the soldiers like dominoes! it then turned around the corner and disarmed the soldiers at the front yard, including general blue!

"...after all...I DON'T WANT NO TROUBLE!!" roshi shouted, giving homage to Jackie Chan as he delivered a kung fu massacre on the poor, disarmed soldiers, who looked as if they were ineffective without their guns!  
meanwhile, bulma,krillin and yamcha, who were hiding in the basement, quickly sneaked onboard the milk cow submarine.

"i can't believe it worked!" yamcha said.

"i can't believe how much porn he's got in his basement! what a disgusting pervert!" bulma said, looking like she was gonna puke.

meanwhile, back on the island, master roshi got rid of all the soldiers...all except general blue... he looked everywhere to see where he was...until, out of nowhere, he appeared right in his face! before he did anything, blue looked at him dead in the eyes, a blinding light flashing in his green eyes straight to roshi's. after the light faded away, roshi tried to move...only to be stuck in place like a statue!

"what the hell?!?" roshi shouted, as he couldn't move!

"heh heh heh...now, you know that the red ribbon is not any ordinary army!" general blue taunted the old man, as he helped his soldiers recover from their beating.

"thanks, general blue! we owe you one!" a dark-skinned soldier said.

"don't just stand there! get the dragon ball!" blue ordered his men, which they swiftly executed. master roshi was powerless, as his frozen state prevented him from doing anything,as the red ribbon picked up his dragon ball and went away onboard their submarines. after they were gone, the sea turtle came towards his master, who was stuck like a statue. he headbutted the stationary hermit in the gut, prompting him to fall on the sand. master roshi started moving again.

" what has this fellow done to you?" the sea turtle asked.

" I dunno..." roshi said. "he just looked at me in the eye and, suddenly, i was paralysed!"

"a psychic?" the turtle said.

" indeed..." roshi said. "...if the red ribbon is full of superpowers guys like that general blue... then bulma, krillin and yamcha are in serious trouble!"

"what shall we do, master?"

"we'll help them save goku! COME, KINTO'UN!"

with a mighty shout, roshi summoned the supersonic cloud.

"uh, master, you're not pure of heart, remember?" the turtle said.

"don't worry, I just need to clear my mind..." roshi said. he closed his eyes, took a deep breath, cleaning his mind of any dirty and impure thoughts. he then jumped really high...and landed on the cloud with no trouble. 

"haha!! who's impure now, bitch!"

"i'll take care of kame house!" the turtle said.

"good idea! I won't be long!" roshi said as he blasted off onboard kinto'un.

meanwhile, in the resupply submarine, bulma, krillin and yamcha were dressed up as red ribbon soldiers, taking clothes from the three soldiers that were knocked out by the flying turtle shell. they were hiding inside an empty room, where usually nobody went.

"alright, guys, let's stay here until they arrive at the base." bulma said. she hoped that goku was alright. and with what her dad said about this Dr. gero guy, she shivered at the thought of what that man could do to the monkey boy.

"hold on, goku, we're coming for you..."

END OF CHAPTER

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> you know, when you think about it, the red ribbon army was pretty progressive for its time period.
> 
> -their leader is a midget
> 
> -their actual commander-in-chief was a cool black guy.
> 
> -their top spy was a Japanese ninja.
> 
> -their top scientist is an old man
> 
> -one of their cyborgs is mentally challenged
> 
> -they even have an openly gay man as one of their general!
> 
> that's pretty cool...
> 
> ...even if they are an evil terrorist group hellbend on conquering the world.
> 
> i always found it funny that Japanese mangaka, despite being born and raised in a society that is backward on certain things, did a way better job at representing minorities, people with mental health issues and women respectfully than most western works!
> 
> maybe because they write them as characters in a story first, and not some cheap token character who's only there to fill a quota.
> 
> thank you for reading!


	16. the bringer of artificial life

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> goku finally wakes up, only to find himself alone, inside a creepy lab, under the mercy of a mad scientist who has big plans for him...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Following is not for profit. it is strictly a fan work meant for personal amusement. Dragon ball, dragon ball z and dragon ball super is property of Akira toriyama, toyotaro, shueisha, Toei animation and shonen jump. please support the official release.
> 
> Some ideas from this fanfic are taken from Lawrence Simpson, AKA: Masakox of teamfourstar fame. check out his what-ifs, they're pretty interesting!

he felt dizzy.

disoriented.

groggy.

with a moan, goku slowly but surely opened his eyes. he doesn't remember a thing about what just happened. the only thing he remembered was that he was making a sandwich at capsule Corp, and a female scientist blew some "spice" in his face. afterwards, he fell asleep. he felt like he slept for a whole month due to how cranky his body was as he tried to get up.

when he got up, he finally opened his eyes...and saw that his entire vision turned dark yellow! wondering what was going on, he then walked forward...only to hit his face right on a window!

"ow! what the..." goku said, as he realised that in front of him...no, in fact, a huge tinted glass dome surrounded him! 

"hey! let me out!" goku shouted, punching the unbreakable glass in vain. then, he heard a sinister giggle as calculated footsteps came closer and closer towards him.

the silhouette became clearer and clearer, until goku could finally see what the person looks like. it was a scrawny-looking middle-aged man, of medium-height, slim, with blue eyes that only meant trouble, spiky white hair and a thick mustache. he looked like a young Joseph stalin.

he looked at goku with a mix of both fascination and malice. the monkey boy wasn't afraid of him. in fact, nothing really makes him scared...

...but he knew this man didn't look or smelled like a saint, either.

" hey! who are you? let me out!!" goku said, continuing to hammer on the unbreakable glass dome, even attempting a kamehameha, only for the glass to reflect the beam right at goku's face! the old man only chuckled at this futile display.

"i'm afraid that not even your ki blasts will be able to get you out of your cell, boy." he said matter-of-factly, his deep voice resonating through the darkness of the room that goku and the creepy old man stood. " the cell you're trapped in is made of tempered glass, the toughest glass type known to man. I built these specifically to contain you. after witnessing your true power at the tournament, I didn't took any chances."

" where are we? who are you, ya creep? and how did I get here?" goku asked all these questions.

" I am Dr. gero." the old man introduced himself. "and this..." as he said that, big lights flashed, revealing a high-tech, underground lab. "...is my lab."

goku checked the lab's surroundings. there were computers everywhere, the screens planted on the walls made of dirt, meaning that this area was underground. the flashing lights on both the screens and buttons made goku dizzy. the monkey boy also realised that there are weird, cylindrical-shaped pods lined up against the walls of dirt, each seemingly containing a person inside.

then, he saw a woman in a lab coat with puffy orange hair. he immediately recognised her.

" hey! you're that girl who blew spices at my face!" goku shouted,not pleased with seeing her.

"did you sleep well, dear?" rubi taunted goku. "I didn't meant to use that much powder, though knowing how strong you are, I didn't take any chances."

" why did you do this? what do you want from me?" goku asked.

"simple..." Dr. gero said, grabbing a set of papers that rubi gave him. "...i simply want your...cooperation."

"my what?" goku asked, not sure of what Dr. gero meant.

"your help." gero explained. "I saw you at the tenkaichi budokai. safe to say, what you did there was impressive!" gero then began looking at the papers. "what particularly caught my eye was how you, your bald friend and the old man were able to produce energy throughout your body. it fascinates me so much that I had to know its secret!" gero then looked at rubi. "...and it just so happens that rubi here found out that my "old friend" Briefs was studying you and the bald child's Ki manipulation."

goku, after hearing what gero said, looked at the sheets of papers in his hands. he then saw that it was Dr. briefs's notes on his sparring session with krillin!

" hey, where did you get that?" goku asked rubi.

"dr. briefs was so kind to borrow me his research notes!" rubi lied. which goku immediately saw.

"liar! you stole them! it's not right to steal stuff!" goku shouted.

"alas, stealing these notes are a necessary evil..." Dr. gero said.

" huh?" goku didn't understand what "necessary evil means. in his mind, it's impossible that doing bad things was a good thing.

"...briefs is a really good scientist..." Dr. gero continued. "...but his abilities are way inferior than mine when it comes to dealing with breakthrough discoveries like ki manipulation."

goku didn't understand a thing about what gero just said. gero became increasingly annoyed at the boy's cluelessness. he hates people who didn't know what he was talking about! "...what I mean by that is...i specialise in "experimental" science, tackling subjects that other scientists would consider either not interesting, too taboo to research or downright implausible...my dream falls into the last two categories."

"your dream?" goku wondered.

"yes, dreams, the main motivating factor in each and every human beings." gero told goku. " you do have a dream, right?" he asked the monkey boy.

"yeah! it's to get stronger!" goku responded in a serious tone, as if he was telling gero to let him out of his cell.

"then you're in luck!" gero sinisterly exclaimed. "cause I can make you stronger, much stronger than any training, in fact!" he gloated.

"how so?" goku asked in a doubtful tone. this old man was not trustworthy.

"...thanks to cybernetics!" gero said, grabbing a remote, pressing on a button. upon pressing on it, a pod with the number 13 opened, revealing a towering man whose impressive musculature was matched in weirdness by the color of his skin, which was blue like a popsicle. half of his body had no skin or muscle tissue, just a series of mechanical parts. it was being worked on by multiple robot arms that was attaching pieces on him.

" what's that?" goku asked, amazed at the size of the man in front of him.

" this, boy, is an android. a being made entirely of artificial engineering." Dr. gero explained. "it is more advanced than any robot ever created, as it is capable of complete autonomy, as long as it is programmed properly. these androids are made with data from every possible fields, from basic ones such as reading, speech and typical human behaviour to the most complex, like combat and strategic thinking."

" Dr. gero studied cybernetics at college." rubi added. "however, he was kicked out of it by the college higher-ups."

"hmph, that's because these fools didn't understand what I'm trying to achieve with this research!" gero said arrogantly. 

" what did you plan?" goku asked.

" simple..." gero then cleared his throat. "...im trying to save humanity."

" really?" goku said. "what does building robots has to do with saving humanity?"

"the world is dying..." Dr. gero began explaining. "...eventually, all of the earth will succumb to mankind's selfish, self-destructive nature. the lush, green forests will be replaced by the grey, soulless steel, and the air will become almost unbreathable due to the constant polluting by our industries. mankind will damage the earth so much, that we won't even be prepared to face any future consequences and threats. these androids I'm building will serve me and help me achieve my dream!"

"what is your dream?" goku asked.

" you see, even androids would eventually be harder to produce, as they are very expensive in terms of both financial and material resources..." gero continued to explain. "...thank God I stumbled upon you, son goku! I saw that golden energy you produced at the tournament, and that's where i knew you were the one who will become my greatest creation!"

" huh? you wanna turn me into a robot or something?" goku asked.

" no, even better than a robot, even better than an android, in fact!" gero boasted. "...i will make you...the world's first artificial human, the next step in mankind's evolution...a cyborg!!"

goku didn't understand what a cyborg was...but he understood that this creepy old man wants to turn him into a soulless machine of destruction! "but why?" goku asked. "why do you want to do this to me?"

"because you, a child, are the most powerful being on earth already!" gero explained. "imagine how strong you'd be if you become a cyborg! with the power and the ki that you have, we can become the new mankind! and, once I'll copy your DNA and inject your ki to make other cyborgs, we'll be strong enough to defend the world from any threat!"

"threats?" goku asked.

"excuse me, doctor..." rubi interrupted. "...but what do you mean by threats?"

" oh, I'm talking about aliens, of course!" gero calmly answered.

"aliens? what's that?" goku asked.

" you can't be serious?!" rubi was stupefied at gero's answer. "there are no other beings in the universe! there is only us!"

" oh, on the contrary..." gero said, confusing both rubi and goku. "...i, too, used to not believe in aliens..." gero turned around to face goku. "...until I took a sample of his DNA..."

before either the monkey boy or the female scientist could ask for some explanations, the alarm suddenly blasted off the speakers! the lights turned red immediately as the words "warning" flashed on Dr. gero's computer screens.

"what's going on?" rubi asked.

"INTRUDER ALERT! INTRUDER ALERT! INTRUDER DETECTED IN THE TOWER! I REPEA-"

"intruders?" rubi said. "how the hell did they found our base?"

"it must be bulma and krillin!" goku said, confident it was his friends. "they've come to save me!" he said.

suddenly, the speaker resonated with white noise. then, suddenly...

"GERO, WE HAVE INTRUDERS! WHERE THE HELL ARE YOUR ANDROIDS??" a deep voice shouted through its microphone.

"don't worry, commander, I will send them for assistance!" gero assured the voice.

"THEY BETTER GET THEIR ROBOT ASSES HERE NOW! THE INTRUDERS ARE EVEN MORE OF A PAIN IN THE ASS THAN WE THOUGHT!" the voice shouted angrily.

" its alright, i'm dispatching them right now!" gero assured.

" AND HURRY UP! RED OUT!" the voice shouted before closing its Microphone.

gero then turned to face rubi.

"rubi, you go with androids 4, 8 and 10!" the mad scientist ordered her. "meanwhile, I'll take care of the boy and finish upgrading 13."

"understo-" rubi was about to confirm that she understood what the mad scientist said when she saw that goku is no longer in his cell! "DOCTOR! THE BOY IS GONE!"

gero immediately looked at the empty cell, then immediately ran towards it. "how in the world did h..." gero then realised that there was a huge hole on the floor. gero then realised that the floor was dirt, meaning that, as he and rubi were looking away, goku dug a hole through the dirt to get out of his cell! gero became furious, he just got fooled by a monkey boy!

" this brat is smarter than I thought!" gero exclaimed. "rubi, you grab 4, 8 and 10 and go after the boy! if you have any trouble catching him, just call me...i'll send 13 after him!"

"WHAT?" rubi exclaimed in surprise. "you can't do that! losan hasn't fully upgraded yet! it would be too much of a risk to send him in an unfini-"

"AFTER HIM!!!" gegero shouted in pure fury towards rubi, who promptly went to activate androids 4, 8 and 10. as their respective pods opened, they revealed their appearances: android 4 looked like a miscular military officer, android 10 looked like an imposing black bouncer, while android 8 looked like a comical version of frankenstein's monster.

" what about the intruders?" rubi asked Dr. gero.

"if you find anybody standing in your way, dispose of them! I don't care! I want the boy alive!!" gero answered sternly.

as rubi and the androids left the underground lab, gero sat back behind his desk exasperated. he then took a look at a portrait containing him alongside a beautiful red-haired woman in a lab coat, along with two children, one a black-haired boy and the other, a blonde-haired girl...

 

after staring at it for what seemed like an eternity, gero then put a cigar in his mouth and stared at android 13, AKA: losan, being upgraded, admiring his experimental blue titanium skin and multiple weapons being attached to it.

gero then took a puff of smoke...then slammed his hand on a button.

losan's eyes then opened, revealing yellow, iris-less eyes that only meant one thing:

DESTROY

END OF CHAPTER

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dr. gero has quite possibly the most sophisticated technology available in his disposition, has an entire team working for him and the red ribbon army gives him carte Blanche and infinite ressources.
> 
> yet he decided to build his lab inside an underground cave...with a box of scraps...without building a floor over the dirt...
> 
> for such a smart man, he makes some really questionable decisions...
> 
> Thank you for reading!


	17. in the heart of the ribbon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> shortly before goku woke up from his slumber, yamcha, bulma and keillin arrived at muscle tower, the secret base where goku was being held captured. deep inside enemy territory, the trio has to stay sharp and not do a single mistake if they wanna save their friend and get out of here alive!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Following is not for profit. it is strictly a fan work meant for personal amusement. Dragon ball, dragon ball z and dragon ball super is property of Akira toriyama, toyotaro, shueisha, Toei animation and shonen jump. please support the official release.
> 
> Some ideas from this fanfic are taken from Lawrence Simpson, AKA: Masakox of teamfourstar fame. check out his what-ifs, they're pretty interesting!

A SHORT WHILE AGO...

life sucks inside a sub.

at least, that's what yamcha thought, upon staying inside the resupply submarine that he, bulma and krillin sneaked inside. the plan of disguising themselves as soldiers of the red ribbon worked wonders, as nobody batted an eye on them. it helps that they never opened their mouths and that all three of them acted like soldiers and knew what the red ribbon stood for, due to the terrorist group appearing everywhere on the news and even having books about them. it really was a genius plan from his girlfriend.

speaking of bulma, she looked amazing in a soldier uniform! yamcha always thought that bulma would look good even if she was dressed like the hoboest of hobos, and he wasn't kidding! "god, i'm so lucky!" he thought.

but then, he remembered how much he hated being onboard this sub. the cramped, tight spaces, the smell of other soldiers and the fuel running this ship. oh god, the smell! if people thought corsi cheese smelled like shit, then they clearly haven't been inside a submarine!

he wondered how long will it takes until those red ribbon bastards arrive at their base, cause he's sick as all hell of this sub! and apparently, bulma and krillin were, too!

then, the fat, mustached soldier came down into the quarters,where the gang were.

"we have arrived, soldiers!" he shouted, prompting everyone to breath a sigh of relief. "we're about to surface! don't forget your coats, it's cold out there!"

"cold?" the trio wondered together in their heads. nonetheless,they did as ordered and put on coats, and they climbed the ladder leading to the outside world.

when the gang exited the sub, they saw that they were in an underground hangar for ships, with ice covering several portions of the walls, with soldiers trying to remove some of it with ice scrapers. the hangars were very busy, with lots of people and trucks transporting weapons, equipment, food and all sorts of stuff both on the ships and off them. these hangars contained an impressive collection of various kinds of ships, from tiny attack submarines and torpedo boats to massive destroyers, aircraft carriers and battleships. the soldiers and workers were helped by 10-foot tall robots that looked suspiciously like xenomorphs.

"that place is huge!" krillin said.

"yeah, a lot bigger than I expected for a terrorist group." yamcha added. 

"and it's very cold, even with our coats on..." bulma analysed, feeling the temperature on her face and body. "...looks like their base is somewhere in bingshan." she said.

" and that region is cold and isolated...a perfect hideout!" krillin added.

"yeah, but..." yamcha said, thinking that something was not right. "...how does a freaking terrorist group have a huge base, warships, large workforce and technology they really shouldn't even be able to afford? it doesnt add up!"

"maybe they're really rich?" krillin wondered.

"or somebody else is backing them...a country perhaps?" yamcha wondered.

"guys, we can ask these questions later." bulma said. "we need to save goku!"

the trio then looked for anybody who could know about goku's kidnappers and Dr. gero. they were searching and looking at anybody that were engaged in conversations and any books containing a list of names of the personnel at muscle tower. when they talked to other soldiers about Dr. gero, they were surprised to hear that the majority of people they talked to never even heard of him! this has put a dent in their plans, and they had to think of something.

then, they eavesdropped on a discussion between general blue, the blonde, narcissit-looking man who commanded the subs, and the fat mustache guy from earlier.

" have your engineers figured out how to make more dragon radars, lieutenant orange?" blue asked the fat mustache guy.

" we're trying, general..." said Lt. orange, sighing. "...we're drawing schematics and blueprints based on our discoveries...but none of them match up! what Dr. briefs achieved is remarkable!"

"i hate to say this..." says general blue, groaning. "...but i think we need to have gero handle it."

"excellent idea!" orange exclaimed. "not to say my engineers aren't good, but they clearly pale compared to him!"

the trio immediately listened to what they had to say. maybe, just maybe, they can find clues as to goku's whereabouts!

"maybe...still don't like that creepy bastard!" general blue said.

"Am I allowed to ask why, general?" orange wondered, curious.

"it's "may I ask you why?", lieutenant!" blue corrected. "you, of all people, should know that I hate people who sucks at grammar!"

"i-i-im sorry, general!" orange nervously apologized.

the trio anxiously wanted them to stop bickering and get on with it!

"as for the reasons why..." blue stated, bringing the conversation back to the mad doctor. "...i dunno...something about him seems...off."

"what things?" orange asked.

"well, for starters, d'you see his face?" blue asked. "his eyes creeps me the fuck out! his lab is creepy, too! I've been In there before. smells like death in there! and who the hell builds a lab in a cave, anyways? and don't get me started on his androids! we can't even distinguish them from any ordinary human beings!"

"a lab in a cave?" bulma whispered, as the trio were now stationed behind a wall. "where could that cave be?" the purple-haired scientist wondered.

"goku is surely locked up in that lab!" krillin said.

" we gotta find a map of the base!" yamcha suggested.

" nonetheless, you should send the radar to gero, he'll give you the schematics to make them." blue suggested Lt. orange. 

"roger!" orange shouted. "...but where is gero's lab? I can't even find it on the base's map!"

when orange said that, the trio was shocked! there goes their plan of finding a map...

"don't worry, I'll guide you there..." blue said, picking the trio's curiosity. after all, he did say he went there before. 

"...however, when we reach the door to his lab, make sure you give me the radar and stay behind!" he ordered sternly.

"really? why?" orange asked.

" gero is a man who has...difficulties trusting others..." blue explained. "...and he is obssesed with keeping his privacy. that's why his lab is not on the base's map. and the only person he trusts is his assistant rubi, the boss himself, and me."

" sheesh, talk about being paranoid!" both orange and yamcha said at the same time. yamcha was whispering it, of course.

 

" and that's why I'm saying something's wrong with him!" blue continued. "both me and commander black are keeping an eye on him, as we feel he is planning something...and my hunch says we'd be on the receiving end of it!"

orange was visibly gulping.

" anyways, enough talk! we should get going." said blue as he and my. orange left towards an elevator completely west of their positions. the trio followed them silently, passing around walls and corridors so that the two higher officers couldn't see them.

they waited until general blue and Lt. orange took the elevator in order to take it themselves. once inside the elevator, they saw that the red ribbon's base had an underground floor judging by what they heard general blue say, It would be logical that Dr. gero would have built his lab underground.

after what seemed like an eternity, the trio finally reached the floor...and immediately covered themselves due to how cold it was! when the elevator door opened, they saw a long, seemingly endless cave in front of them. unlike the ground-level floors, the underground level was not developed at all. no brick walls, no sophisticated technology, hell, no personnel at all! only a cold, damp cave full of dirt and rocks.

"brr, and gero built his lab in there?" bulma said to herself.

" well, the blue guy did say he loves his privacy." yamcha told her.

" yeah, but isn't it going too far? I mean, he's at the bottom of the earth!" krillin exclaimed.

" now where could general blue and the orange guy have went?" bulma wondered as the trio looked everywhere in the cave. every turn, every path, every corner. still no sign of the general.

then, suddenly...

"HANDS IN THE AIR!!"

the trio was surprised at the sudden shouting, and immediately put their hands in the air and turned around, only to see a squad of soldiers brandishing rifles and machine guns, woth lt. orange leading them and general blue approaching them smugly.

" you thought we didn't know you were stalking us, didn't ya?" blue taunted, the trio shaking in fear. "we knew from the start that you intruders weren't among our ranks ever since you stepped foot inside the base!"

"w-what? how?" krillin asked, afraid of what's about to happen to him.

" simple...the woman is wearing Pvt. magenta's uniform!" blue said,looming at bulma. "and I know my personnel by heart...the woman smells of cologne and lilacs, while magenta smells like a rotten skunk.  
.." the trio and some of the soldiers made faces of disgust. "...and, most importantly, Pvt. magenta's a man!"

"shit!" bulma swore in her head. she didn't realise this incredibly small detail. but then, she realised another thing: general blue has the dragon radar in his pockets! she then thought of a plan...

"OMG, What a man!" the purple-haired scientist suddenly shouted in a girly tone, confusing everyone. " you're exactly my type!" she said to the blonde general.

"...i beg your par-HEY,W-WHAT ARE YO-" general blue was suddenly grabbed by a drooling bulma, the purple-haired girl leaning her body close to his and even rubbing his chest. krillin, yamcha and the red ribbon soldiers wondered What the hell was going on.

"EWW, GET OFF ME, YOU FILTH!!" general blue told bulma in a slightly effeminate tone as he pushed bulma away.

"huh? what's wrong with you?" bulma asked him.

"What's wrong with YOU!" blue answered, pointing his finger at bulma. "I'm germophobic, dammit!" he said, again in an effeminate tone.

"heh heh, what a fag!" yamcha laughed out loud.

all of the red ribbon soldiers gasped in unison at what they've just heard. the trio was confused at everybody's reaction, while general blue...well, let's just say that he is seeing red!

yamcha wondered why was blue so angry... then, he immediately realised what was going on.

"WAIT WHAT??" yamcha shouted in surprise. "y-y-you're actually gay??"

"uh, yamcha..." krillin whispered to the former thief. "...you should say "member of the LGB-"

"YOUUUU!!!" Blue interrupted loudly, directing his rage-filled stare at the trio. " you will regret the day you were born!!" he said, looking as if he was ready to strike, prompting the trio to take a fighting stance.

then, suddenly, the alarm went off! everybody was looming everywhere in confusion as everything became red.

"INTRUDER ALERT! INTRUDER ALERT! INTRUDERS DETECTED IN THE TOWER! I REPEA-"

"a tower?" bulma said,surprised at how the voice in the intercom described the base. it turns out that the red ribbons base is a tower built in the middle of the cold bingshan region.

"heh heh, it seems one of our soldiers have sounded the alarm."blue laughed sinisterly. "you have nowhere to hide, now!" he taunted.

" GENERAL! WE NEED YOUR HELP NOW!!" a voice shouted through blue's walkie talkie. "WE HAVE AN INTRUDER!!"

"don't worry, lieutenant turquoise!" blue assured confidently, "we caught the in-" blue then realised that turquoise spoke of only one intruder, instead of multiple. "...hold on, what do you Mean, AN intruder?" he asked, emphasising the word an.

"THERE'S A.... ON LEVEL 1....AND HE'S..." the walkie talkie had interference.

"turquoise? TURQUOISE?" blue asked, before putting his walkie talkie back in his pocket. he then looked at orange and his men. "orange, go help our troops on level 1, I'll take care of these three pests!"

"uh, general, you should hurry up..." orange said, pointing behind blue. blue then turned around, only to see the trio running away while he wasn't looking! "dammit!! don't just stand there, go!!" he ordered the orange troops, and they immediately ran towards the stairs. blue then turned around and ran towards the trio.

"heh, heh, I know who you are, bulma briefs!" blue monologued. "I know you built multiple dragon radars, my friend losan told me so! I just need to connect my dragon radar to yours and I'll easily fin-" blue then felt that the dragon radar wasn't in his pockets. he checked them...only to find out it was gone! "WHAT?? HOW DID TH-" he then remembered when bulma leeches onto him earlier. "the bitch! she tooK the opportunity to pickpocket the radar!" blue said.

there was no doubt about it: the intruders were after the stolen dragon ball!

meanwhile, the trio kept on running.

"see? I told you the thieving skills I taught you would come in handy!" yamcha said to his girlfriend.

"i figured that, since they have a dragon ball, that not only we'll save goku, but we'll have to get the dragon ball, too!" bulma analysed.

"leave the dragon ball to me!" yamcha suggested. "I'm better at finding treasures. you and krillin will take care of goku!"

"alright!" both krillin and bulma shouted at the same time. they then reached a dead end, with two ways being presented to them.

" okay, where should we go?" bulma asked.

"i dunno..." yamcha answered, shrugging. "...wait, krillin, you can sense ki, right?" he asked the bald monk.

"of course!" a light bulb went on in krillin's head. he then closed his eyes, concentrating himself on sensing goku's aura. suddenly, he felt an aura moving somewhere. "I found him!" krillin exclaimed.

"you found him?" bulma asked. "where is gero's lab?"

"he's...actually, he's moving! like he's digging a tunnel, making a great escape!" krillin explained.

" no way! he escaped?" bulma was shocked. how in the world did son goku managed to escape captivity?

"hahaha, that monkey boy is something else!" yamcha exclaimed.

"anyways, he's on the left!" krillin pointed at the aforementioned direction.

" okay..." yamcha checked on the radar. a blip appeared all the way up wards towards the right. "...ill get the dragon ball!"

"when we're done..." bulma said, grabbing the walkie talkie from her uniform. "...we'll contact each other, and you tell us where to join you!"

"roger!" yamcha said as the trio went their separate ways, yamcha going alone to the right, bulma and krollin to the left...a while later, general blue arrived at the same dead end. thinking that yamcha was not important, and that bulma had the dragon radar in her pockets, he went left, determined to teach them a lesson!

yamcha, meanwhile, ran up the stairs leading to the first floor, passing by red ribbon soldiers who didn't notice him, as he is still in disguise. he hid inside a trash bin, checking his Dragon radar, the blip still appearing at the very top of the radar. yamcha correctly figured that the dragon ball was stored on another floor.

then, he heard fighting going on in the hangar of the first floor. yamcha thought that they must be fighting this "intruder" that they were talking about!curious as to who this other intruder was, he sneaked towards the danger zone, where he saw wave after wave of enemy soldiers flying in all direction! he also saw a xenomorp robot shooting at something that was moving very fast.

and then, a huge, blue laser completely blew up the robot's head off, making it fall down, dead.

"that blue laser...it can't be!" yamcha was stunned. only one man can fire a laser that powerful!

and his suspicions were correct, as a small, bald man wearing a Hawaiian shirt, sunglasses, blue pants and black kung fu shoes appeared in front of the Destroyed robot, making a peace sign.

END OF CHAPTER

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wonder how come the red ribbon army recognise each other with all those colorful names? imagine if some of their soldiers have names like " light blue", "deep red" or even "dijon mustard yellow".
> 
> man, talking about all these colors made me want to eat Skittles.
> 
> and building their secret base in the middle of freaking winterland might be a great place to hide...if it wasn't for the fact that it's a huge-ass, 10-stories-high tower, making it an easy target for bombing!
> 
> surely, running up-and-down that tower must be a game of death!
> 
> thank you for reading!


	18. the monkey boy and the shinobi

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> goku finally escaped from Dr. gero's lab, and his digging leads him to a beautiful garden...that hides a deadly threat in the ninja murasaki!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Following is not for profit. it is strictly a fan work meant for personal amusement. Dragon ball, dragon ball z and dragon ball super is property of Akira toriyama, toyotaro, shueisha, Toei animation and shonen jump. please support the official release.
> 
> Some ideas from this fanfic are taken from Lawrence Simpson, AKA: Masakox of teamfourstar fame. check out his what-ifs, they're pretty interesting!

he keeps on digging.

and digging...

and digging...

our monkey boy, son goku, was relentless, digging his homemade tunnel at a blistering pace. that pace produced sweat all over his face full of dirt, determined to escape from this unknown prison that he woke up in.

he kept on digging...

and digging...

and digging...

until, suddenly, as removed yet another piece of dirt, a light appeared in front of his eyes!

"YAHOO!! I made it outside!" exclaimed an extremely happy goku, thinking that he finally escaped.

he continued digging and digging until he finally opened a hole and climbed out of his tunnel, the light blinding his eyes. as his eyes got used to it, what he saw mesmerized him.

it was a beautiful garden designed in the traditional Japanese manner: small scale, a small forest of pine trees in the middle, calm ponds flowing like a serpent from east to west connected by a stream, a cascade representing a mountain waterfall and an artificial island that was barely visible through the pine trees. rocks were assembled in the water surrounding it like the ying and the yang. near the forest was a small shed made of wood guarding it.

goku's body calmed down looking at the beautiful, serene sight. he wiped off the sweat on his face and breathed a nice puff of air. the air smelled of the scent many flowers: tulips, camellias, daffodils, lilies, swee-

"hey, hold on a minute..." goku suddenly stopped, then took another breath of air. "...It doesn't even smell like fresh air!" he exclaimed, shocked to find out that the garden in front of him was actually an artificial one. and then, he looked up, and saw a dome above him. he couldn't believe it, he was still inside the weird place where he was captured!

suddenly, four kunais came out of nowhere and were headed towards goku! the monkey boy barely dodges them by jumping away, landing on a nearby rock. surprised at this sudden attack, goku immediately checked his surroundings.

"show yourself, you coward!" goku ordered to his invisible assailant. no words were spoken. goku then sneaked inside the forest in order to find his attacker.

then, suddenly...

"Omedetogozaimasu!" a deep, raspy voice shouted at goku from somewhere deep in the forest, in a tone that suggested that he was congratulating him. "you managed to escape your prison cell. and in a manner very befitting of a shinobi!" the voice complemented goku in a thick Japanese accent. " however...this will be your last hurrah!" the voice threatened, as shurikens came behind goku's back! goku sidestepped to the left, barely avoiding them.

"sugoi! you're more skilled than I thought!" the voice talked again.

"where are you?" goku shouted as he looked around the forest.

"that's for you to find out!" the voice answered, giggling. "nobody has come out of my forest alive! and you will be my next victim!"

"over there..." goku thought, as he tried following where the shurikens came from. he concentrated his view on the tree branches above him. that's where, deep in the middle of them, he saw a purple-clad figure standing on one of the branches, ready to throw another batch of shurikens.

"FOUND YOU!!" goku shouted as he threw a rock at that direction. suddenly, a loud "WHACK!" was heard, followed by a surprised grunt as the figure fell down to the ground. the figure then stood up, giving goku a better look at him.

he was an Asian man in his late 20s, he had a slender, yet developed build underneath purple ninja clothes, he had big, black, bushy eyebrows the same color as his hair, which was tied up to look like a palm tree. on his back was a ninja-to. his nose had a gash above its nostrils, the Rock hitting him there.

" KUSO!" the ninja swore in Japanese, before looking at the monkey boy. "you got lucky!" he said, looking at goku menacingly.

"uh, no, I saw you!" goku told him.

" MASAKA!" the ninja shouted. "Nobody can see the almighty purple agent of the red ribbon: ninja murasaki!" he exclaimed, pronouncing his own name. "I am the grand Master of stealth and subtility!!" he boasted.

"...you're loud and you wear purple." goku dully said.

"URUSEI!!" murasaki shouted as he threw a smoke bomb at goku,completely destabilising him. once the smoke cleared, the monkey boy saw that the purple ninja disappeared again! he then cautiously walked in the forest, trying to find him while watching his own back so that he doesn't get killed.

then, he saw a big American flag lying on a tree.

"found you!" goku said, pointing at the flag.

"...are you serious?" murasaki whispered.

"yup!" goku said.

murasaki then checked his flag...and felt like a dumbass upon seeing he was carrying an American flag, and not a camo green one! "KUSO!"

"now, face me like a real fighter!"goku said as he took a fighting stance.

"hahaha!" murasaki laughed suddenly. "don't skip any steps, Shonen yo! im not done testing you yet!"

"huh? what do you mean, test me?" goku asked, relaxing.

"face that tree and count to 30!" murasaki ordered the monkey boy.

"why? you don't wanna fight?" goku asked, confused.

"Just do what I say! and don't turn around until you count to 30!" the ninja ordered, annoyed.

goku then faced the tree and started counting to 30. murasaki took advantage to use one of his signature ninja technique: hiding inside a convincing fake rock!

however, before he could enter it...

"uh,what's after 18?" goku asked, facing the ninja.

"NANI? are you kidding me?" murasaki was frustrated at the boy's naivety. "grr, after 18, it's 19, then 20..." the ninja then ordered the monkey boy to face the tree again and count to 30.

after goku did so, he went searching for him. he searched for him everywhere in the forest, but he couldn't find him. goku then went to where the shed was, and suddenly stared at a bamboo branch sticking out of the pond near the shed. seeing that it must be the ninja, he wondered how to catch him by surprise...he then went to the shed, found a tea kettle that was actually full of hot tea. he then went back to the pond and dropped tea inside the bamboo branch...which prompted murasaki to burst out of the water in pain as the hot tea burned his tongue.

"found you, hahahaha!" goku laughed at the purple ninja's face.

"GRR, SOREDE OSHIMAI!!" murasaki was fuming! "No more games!" he exclaimed as he flew like a rocket into the forest. goku tried following him, using his considerable speed to catch up to him. murasaki was surprised that the monkey boy caught up with him! he threw spikes on his feet, catching goku off guard...but goku kept on running! murasaki was surprised by this child's resistance to pain! and he's actually getting near him! feeling he had no choice, murasaki brandished his ninja-to at goku's head. the monkey boy then ducked it and swung his nyoibo at murasaki's legs, tripping him and making him tumble multiple times.

goku then took advantage of the situation to strike the ninja upwards...but murasaki blocks it with his ninja-to! he then pushes goku away with his legs, got up and jumped high and dived towards the monkey boy, looking to strike him with the top of his sword.

goku saw it coming, though! he planted his nyoibo on the ground and made it extend, so that when murasaki landed, the staff went right up his ass!

the ninja ran circles in pain as the nyoibo was stuck inside his butthole, with goku laughing hysterically. the monkey boy then removed his staff from murasaki's buttcrack.

"T...temeeee..." murasaki was frustrated. he just got humiliated by a young boy! "YURUSANEEE!!!" he screamed as he gtabbed his ninja-to and swung at goku, who blocked every one of his swings with nyoibo, surprising the ninja, who never thought a staff would be able to block a sword! goku then kicked away murasaki, and now goes on the offensive! he was relentless, murasaki having difficulties parry his strikes,until goku, with one vertical swing, broke murasaki's sword in half!

" No...how is this possible?" murasaki was dumbstruck. a freaking bo staff cut his beautiful sword, sasanishiki, in half!

"ya still wanna fight? or are you nothing without your sword?" goku taunted, looking to strike again.

then, murasaki smiled and giggled sinisterly.

"i'm nothing without my sword...such a pathetic insult!" murasaki said, as he cast aside his broken sword and took a fighting stance. "my hands are as deadly as any weapon!" he boasted.

"we'll see about that!" goku said, sheating nyoibo and taking his own fighting stance.

"SHI NE!!" murasaki suddenly shouted as he threw a boomerang-shaped shurikens at goku, to which the monkey boy casually avoids.

"hey! not fair! you used a weapon!" goku complained.

"silly little boy! anything is fair game in a life-or-death battle!" the ninja told goku.

however, what goku didn't know was that the boomerang was coming back towards him!

"huh...now that I'm thinking about it..." goku said, having no clue that he was about to meet his maker.

murasaki smiled. that boy is so naive! his victory is assured!

then, at the exact moment where the boomerang shurikens was about to hit...

"alright, then!" goku said as he leaned on one side, stretching his right leg, unknowingly avoiding the boomerang!

murasaki just stood there, frozen in his sinister smile as the boomerang shuriken planted itself in his forehead, making him bleed like a pig. the ninja couldn't believe it. he was 99.9% sure he was gonna kill goku.

the coin landed on the .1%!

murasaki then landed comically on his back like a domino. goku only looked at him in confusion.

murasaki then got up, bandages suddenly appearing on his forehead, and ran away, prompting goku to follow him.

"seriously? running away again? you have no honor!" goku shouted.

murasaki answered by throwing shurikens at him. goku, in an amazing feat of perception and dexterity, caught all the shurikens while running! he then put it inside his pockets, as if he was gonna use them later.

the purple ninja then entered the shed, with goku following him inside. murasaki then turned around to face the monkey boy, who threw his own shuriken at him. but murasaki kicks the tatami floor, making a piece of it appear to block the shuriken! goku continued throwing them, but murasaki kicks the tatami each and every time! the purple ninja then jumped out of the window and runs towards the lake surrounding the artificial island, with goku following him.

then, goku's eyes had an unbelievable sight as murasaki ran on water! he reached the island with ease.

" what? how did you-"

"hahaha! this is the amenbo no Jutsu! the walk-on-water technique! let's see you reach the other side of the lake!" the ninja taunted him...only for goku to do an amazing long jump, using only one hop to reach the other side! 

"NANI? how did you-"

"hahaha! this is sarutobi no jutsu!" goku said using a fake Japanese accent, mocking the ninja.

"Grr, teme yaro!" murasaki groaned. then, he did something goku did not expect.

he positioned his right index and middle fingers horizontally, behind his left index and middle fingers, who were positioned vertically.

"huh? what's th-"

"KAGE BUNSHIN NO JUSTSU!!!"

suddenly, a huge puff of smoke appeared in front of goku, making him temporarily blind. then, when the smoke cleared, goku couldn't believe what he was seeing!

there, surrounding him, were 5 ninja murasakis!

"hahaha! you're finished!" all 5 murasakis spoke at the same time.

"w-w-who's the real one? what am I going to do? they all look real to me!" goku wonndered out loud.

"THAT'S BECAUSE WE ARE!!" shouted a murasaki as he threw shurikens at the boy, who avoided it, then parried a sword strike from another murasaki just in time. but then, another murasaki brought out a revolver, shooting all six of its shots at goku, who avoided and blocked them in a clumsy fluidity.

"WE'RE GONNA MAKE SASHIMI OUTTA YA!!" the leading murasaki said as all 5 of them lunged at goku at the same time. an intense fight occurred as goku managed to block all of their moves in a rapid-fire ballet of melee weapons fighting that not even the best fight choreographers in Hong Kong can come up with. it all culminated with all 5 ninjas striking goku at the same time, with goku extending nyoibo and blocking them all! he struggled hard, tryjng to keep nyoibo in his hands.

" HAHAHA! we have five times the strength of one ninja! MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA MUDA!!" each murasaki took turns telling goku it was useless to resist.

"NYOIBO, EXTEND!!" goku shouted, as nyoibo extended until it was the length of a massive javelin, surprising the 5 ninjas. goku then ran to the left, carrying the ninjas with him. to their surprise, their ninja-to were firmly planted on the staff!

which meant that, when goku had enough momentum, he threw nyoibo in the air with all of his might, sending the murasakis's ninja-to flying into the shed, destroying it!!

"NOOO!! OUR NINJA-TO!!" all 5 ninjas shouted at the same time as they were now dispossessed!

goku then wasted no time, and did a quadruple afterimage strike, knocking out the 4 clones and making them explode in a puff of smoke!

the real ninja murasaki was stunned. here he lies, completely defeated by the panting monkey boy In front of him. murasaki gave it his all, even his unbeatable shadow clone technique, and still, he lost.

to a boy...

a child...

"ho...how...humiliating..." murasaki whispered, looking completely lost and in despair.

suddenly...

he took out a kunai...

he puts it in front of his stomach...

but suddenly...

goku grabbed it from his hands.

murasaki was confused and surprised. he looked at the boy in front of him. he had a look.

a look that belies his age...

a look of determination...

the look of a wise man...

a look of...pity?

"w...why?" murasaki simply asked. such a simple word was asking everything. why is he having pity for him? why did he stopped him from committing seppuku? why, after all this time fighting each other, after trying to kill him so many times...

 

why is he forgiving him?

goku only answered by taking away murasaki's kunai and throw it in the lake. he then looked at him with complete seriousness.

murasaki was in awe of this boy. just in his stare, there was a kind of wiseness and pure-heartedness that was way beyond his years. he looked as if he had seen death before, and that it profoundly marked him. maybe that's why he didn't kill him and prevented him from killing himself:

he doesn't want to see anybody suffer.

"...where is the exit?" goku dully asked the broken ninja...who then pointed at a set of stairs near them that went up. "thank you!" goku said, giving the fallen ninja a warm smile that made him smile himself.

as goku went towards the stairs, murasaki looked at his hands, not believing what just happened.

he then looked at the monkey boy as he left towards the unknown depths of the muscle tower. in murasaki's mind...that boy is sarutobi sasuke's reincarnation!

"finally, i'm out of this mess!" goku said, thinking that the stairs would lead him to the outside...only to find himself in an empty hallway. "what? I'm still inside? where the heck am I?" goku wondered out loud, not knowing that he was inside a multi-level tower.

he continued running and running, climbing stairs and making his way to what he hopes is a possible exit...only to be stopped dead on his tracks by an imposing shadow! he then looked up, and saw a huge, imposing man that looked like frankenstein's monster standing right in front of him...

 

END OF CHAPTER

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> when i wrote this chapter, and when i saw the ninja murasaki fight in the real dragon ball, this thought came to me:
> 
> Naruto basically took all of murasaki's gimmicks and ran with it!
> 
> if I was murasaki, I would've demanded royalty checks from kishimoto and the entire village of konoha!
> 
> i mean, he invented the fucking shadow clone technique, for God's sake! give him his royalties!
> 
> thank you for reading!


	19. hermits, bandits and androids

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> yamcha tries to find the stolen dragon ball, but the unexpected appearance of master roshi surprises him. and things shakes up even more when the two men comes face to face with one of Dr. gero's dangerous androids!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Following is not for profit. it is strictly a fan work meant for personal amusement. Dragon ball, dragon ball z and dragon ball super is property of Akira toriyama, toyotaro, shueisha, Toei animation and shonen jump. please support the official release.
> 
> Some ideas from this fanfic are taken from Lawrence Simpson, AKA: Masakox of teamfourstar fame. check out his what-ifs, they're pretty interesting!

A SHORT WHILE AGO...

the thunderous sounds of cannons and anti-air weaponry resonated throughout the snowy mountains of the bingshan region as muscle tower, the red ribbon's headquarters, was seemingly under attack by a strange, unidentified flying object flying in circles above them.

however, what they didn't know was that the UFO in question was actually the supersonic cloud, kinto'un! last time we saw it, it was carrying the turtle hermit, muten roshi, to muscle tower in order for the old martial arts master to help krillin, yamcha and bulma in their quest to save goku.

however, the turtle hermit wasn't on the cloud! why would an empty flying cloud be doing circling around muscle tower as cannons fired at its direction?

meanwhile, down below, near the hangar door, heavily armed soldiers carrying panzer Faust rocket launchers exited the base and went towards the zone where the cloud was flying. then, after everybody got out, the turtle hermit himself sneaked inside the hangar.

that's right, roshi used kinto'un as a distraction in order to sneak inside the base!

once inside, he hid underneath a truck as soldiers were passing by. he then sneaked behind a wall, hearing loud noises coming from inside the cafeteria.

he saw a couple of soldiers partying, celebrating the birthday of a certain lieutenant turquoise. the lieutenant in question was a skinny man who looked inebriated, carrying a bottle of champagne in his hands, singing a party song with other soldiers.

suddenly, lieutenant turquoise saw master roshi enter the cafeteria, and the party immediately stopped, every soldier looking at the hermit.

" howdy, gentlemen!" roshi greeted. "have you seen a monkey boy around here?" he asked the confused and inebriated soldiers.

"wh-who are "HIC!" who are y-y-you, ya o-o-old "hic"" lieutenant turquoise was completely drunk.

" oh, just a master who is concerned about his student." roshi dully answered. "I heard one of your friends, a certain gero, is taking care of him here. do you know where he is?"

upon hearing the mad scientist's name coming out of roshi's mouth, all the soldiers in the cafeteria suddenly became alert, looking like they wanna fight.

then, suddenly...

"who told you about all of this?" a booming voice asked the turtle hermit, resonating throughout the cafeteria as an intimidating black man entered it. he was tall, 6 feet 2,at least, was wearing a formal suit and tie, bald, had a well-shaved beard and looked like he didn't mess around. he also looked eeriely similar to samuel L. jackson.

when the soldiers looked at the man, they all gasped and turned pale. "C-c-c-commander black!" lieutenant turquoise shouted in surprise.

" really? they call you commander black?" roshi asked, stupefied. " I feel bad for you, man!"

"it doesn't matter!" black sternly said. "now, answer my question: how do you know about gero and the boy?" he asked the hermit, to the confusion of the ignorant soldiers.

" you really should change your name..." roshi said, completely avoiding the question.

"hey, i asked you a question!" com. black was annoyed at roshi ignoring his question.

"...cause calling a man like you commander black is a bit rasci-"

"ANSWER! MY! QUESTION!" com. black was very annoyed.

"fine, geez..." roshi then cleared his throat.

"well, to be honest, commander..." lieutenant turquoise suddenly interjected. "...i think a name change Is not a bad id-"

"I DON'T REMEMBER ASKING YA A GODDAMN THING!" com. black shouted at turquoise, shutting him up. he then looked at roshi. "how do you know about this? and how the hell did you get here?" he asked the hermit.

" I've known the red ribbon for a long time." roshi cryptically said. "in fact, I actually was there , at muscle tower, when the ribbon was born!"

"from the beginning? you a former member?" com. black asked.

"nope." roshi answered. "but I know your boss very well. since childhood,in fact!"

"y-youre friends with commander red?" lieutenant turquoise asked.

" no, not him..." roshi precised. "...i mean your real boss..."

com. black and the soldiers were becoming suspicious.

"...we trained in the shaolin temple together, under master mutaito."

when he said that, the soldiers were still confused. com. black, though, looked at roshi with surprise and terror. "Y-y-you're muten roshi?" he asked.

after hearing his name, the soldiers recognised him and started circling the hermit. 

"ah, finally!" roshi said mockingly. "I was wondering when you'll line up for my autograph!"

"this man knows too much!" com. black shouted. "dispose of him!" he ordered, leaving the cafeteria.

"hohoho!" roshi laughed as the soldiers were all charging towards him. "unfortunately...its easier said than Done!"

roshi then stomped a cafeteria table, grabbed it in mid-air and swung at incoming soldiers, knocking them out. when machine guns fired, the sturdiness of the table allowed him to block the bullets. he then pushed the table at the gunners, knocking them out too.

he then turned around and threw his turtle shell at incoming soldiers, making them tumble like bowling pins as the shell ricocheted on the wall, knocking down soldiers in the way.

the hermit then jumped on the spinning shell, grabbed two Mr. clean spray cleaners and shoot incoming soldiers in the eye with them, the soldiers crying in pain as the toxic product shattered their eyes.

roshi then flipped an ollie with his shell, grabbing it in mid-air and putting it on his back again. however, soldiers began firing at him, prompting him to retreat in the bathrooms.

lieutenant turquoise entered the bathroom that roshi entered, and starts kicking open the stolls. after finding nothing in the first two, turquoise opened the third...to find a female soldier screaming in embarrassment.

"oops, sorry!" turquoise said.

then, roshi appears behind him and dropkicked him into the female soldier's breasts, prompting her to slap him right into roshi, who slapped him in return. the hermit and the woman proceeded to do a tennis match, taking turns slapping turquoise silly.

outside of the cafeteria, commander black watched as soldiers went flying into the hangar, unable to contain the old martial arts master. he sighed in exasperation, before a huge xenomorph robot appeared behind him, as if it was awaiting orders.

" just kill that old bastard!" he mumble under his breath to the xenomorphs robot, whose eyes turned red and loaded its left-hand machine gun and right-hand missile launcher as it walked towards the cafeteria. commander black then pulled down the alarm lever, sending the entire base in red alert.

the cafeteria was filled with the bodies of knocked out red ribbon soldiers, with master roshi standing in the middle drinking tea. "hmm, I've tasted better tea." roshi said after taking a sip.

suddenly, as he was about to take another sip, the cup exploded in his face, a 7.62x51mm bullet being responsible for this.

the hermit, angry that his cup exploded in front if his face, turned his head to face the cafeteria door, where a xenomorph robot pointed his machine gun left hand at him.

" I was drinking tea!" roshi exclaimed, offended. "how rude! robots are made to serve, not cause trouble!"

as if in reaction to what roshi just said, the xeno-robot fired at him. roshi turning his back so that his shell took the bullets. he then stomped on a table and backflip kicked it towards the xeno-robot, pushing it away as they exited the cafeteria and went to the hangar.

roshi then ran with great speed as the xeno-robot fired his missiles at him, using many vehicles as cover. at one point, one of the missiles pushed roshi back, sending him crashing in a wall. he coughed as he got up, the robot aiming his missile launcher at him.

however, unbeknownst to the robot, a ray of light shined in roshi's hands.

"HAAAA!!!"

roshi screamed with all of his might as he shot a kamehameha at the robot's head, completely obliterating it to pieces as it soon fell down on its back. roshi taunted the robot by doing a peace sign.

when the smoke cleared, the hangar was all dirty, with many trucks and parts of fighter jets being destroyed due to the xeno-robot's missiles. roshi then stretched and went on his way when suddenly...

" NO WAY!! what are you doing here?"

roshi recognised that voice. he turned around and saw yamcha dressed as a red ribbon soldier heading towards him.

"well, hello, yamchAAARGH!!" roshi didn't even have time to greet the former desert bandit, as the latter took him by the collar as they hid behind rubbles.

"SHHH, they'll hear us!" yamcha whispered.

"what's wrong with you, pulling me like that?" roshi whispered. "I swear, you've got no respect for your el-"

"what are you doing here?" yamcha asked.

"why, I'm here to help you save goku, of course!" roshi answered.

"you're late to the party...cause goku escaped!" yamcha told him.

"he escaped? on his own?" roshi asked, to which yamcha answered with a nod. "wow. he's something special, alright!"

"yeah, krillin sensed his ki." yamcha explained. "apparently, he was digging towards the left."

"hmm, hold on..." roshi then concentrated all of his mind on sensing goku's ki. after a couple of seconds, he detected an aura far from where they stood, on the first floor. "...found him! he's over there!" roshi said, pointing at where he detected goku.

"really?" yamcha said. "oh man, krillin and bulma are stuck underground... we gotta find them!"

"didn't ya wanna save goku?" roshi asked.

"yeah, but now that goku's here, everything changed!" yamcha explained. "bulma and krillin still thinks he's underground, in gero's lab! and they have that general blue guy pursuing them! we have to save them!"

" hmm, not a bad idea." roshi whispered. then, he saw the dragon radar in yamcha's hand. "huh? you found the stolen radar?"

"yeah, I'm using it to get the dragon ball they took at your house." yamcha said. "of course, while I was going, I bumped into you and now, here we are!"

"didn't ya wanted to retrieve the notes on Dr. briefs's experiments with ki, too?" roshi asked.

" oh, yeah, right!" yamcha exclaimed, remembering that part. "I guess bulma and krillin do have a reason to still got to gero's lab, after all!"

"let's help them, then! goku can easily take care of himself!" roshi said, to which yamcha agreed. however, just as the two began running towards the elevator, a huge truck landed right between them and the elevator, surprising both men! they then turned around, only to see the person who threw that truck at them.

he was huge, almost 8 feet tall, was built like a brick house and was decked in a green, sleeveless shirt and khaki pants, the traditional outfit for a G.I. his head was squarer than a square, had military-cut blonde hair and was wearing Gucci sunglasses. the number 4 was tattooed on his impressive neck, as well as serial numbers.

"W-W-WHAT THE HELL?" yamcha was shaking like a spaghetti. "H-H-How in the world was he able to throw that truck? is he that strong?"

"not "he", but rather, "it"!" roshi said, prompting yamcha to look at him, not understanding what the hermit just said. "look at his neck, yamcha!" he told the former desert bandit.

yamcha took a look, and indeed noticed the numbers tattooed on his neck, especially thserial numbers. "W-w-wha?you mean he's actually-"

"an android!" roshi said, taking a fighting stance.

"QUESTION: WHERE IS SON GOKU?" android 4 asked in a monotone, robotic voice.

" huh? that's weird..." yamcha said, curious. "...bulma told me they fought another android, and she said the other looked and talked indistinguishably like a real person. here, it's more obvious that it's a robot!"

"it's probably one of gero's earlier androids." roshi guessed. "the one bulma fought was probably one of the later models."

"you know Dr. gero and robotics?" yamcha asked the hermit.

"i don't read just porn, ya know!" roshi said, with a smile.

"AGRESSIVE TONE: ANSWER THE QUESTION, OR FACE ANIHILATION." the android menacingly ordered.

"OVER OUR DEAD BODIES, YA PIECE OF JUNK!!" roshi taunted, forcing yamcha, who was visibly gulping in fear, to take a fighting stance.

"EXHASPERATED TONE: VERY WELL...COMBAT MODE ACTIVATED." android 4 said as his fists cranked and rockets started coming out of its shoulders.

" to the right, now!" roshi shouted at yamcha as both men sidestepped to that direction to avoids the rockets. wave after wave of rockets came at them, almost at if the android had an infinite amount of them! yamcha, despite this, still managed to sneak behind it and does a flying kick...when he landed it, a resonating "THUD" sound was made, and the android turned around, not even hurt, to face yamcha and whacked him so hard, he sent him flying into the women's bathroom!

he then turned his attention towards roshi,only to be met with a face full of explosions, as the hermit grabbed and tossed grenades he found on the bodies of knocked out soldiers around the hangar. he knew that it would take something big to take down the giant, and he moved arou d while tossing the grenade at the android. at one point, he threw a smoke bomb at the android. taking advantage of the distraction, roshi beefed up, picked up a pillar and threw it at him.

...but the android saw it coming! he pivoted, grabbing the pillar in mid-air and threw it back at roshi! the hermit, surprised at that move, barely avoided it. he beefed up again, then charged at the android, entering a wrestling match with the robot. the two struggle to gain control, delivering submission moves, suplexes and piledrivers on each other.

then, as the android put roshi in a headlock, it suddenly got hit in the back by a rocket! roshi, being released from the headlock, saw that it was yamcha who fired it, carrying a panzer Faust rocket launcher, presumably found on another body. the rocket opened a huge hole on android 4's back!

"HERMIT!! THE KAMEHAMEHA, NOW!" yamcha screamed at roshi.

"YOSH!!" roshi exclaimed as he charged the kamehameha, facing the hole on android 4's back as the mechanical giant was suffering from electric shocks from that rocket.

"kamehame...HAAAAA!!!!"

with all of his power behind it, roshi fired the kamehameha, the laser piercing through the complex metal plating and circuitry of android 4, blowing up its main driver.

"ERROR....ERROR...DAMAGE..." those were the last words uttered by android 4 as it fell down hard, obliterated from the inside.

after all of this struggle, roshi deflated and fell on his knees. yamcha came to his aid.

"hermit! you alright?" yamcha asked, worried.

"(panting) that guy was tougher than he looked...(panting)" roshi answered, breathing hard.

"yeah, not because you're old or anything, but...you should avoid fighting like that." yamcha suggested.

"no way, man!" roshi boasted while panting. "I'm ready to take on a t-rex!" as he said that, he almost fell on his ass.

"look, you should calm down." yamcha said. "anyways, we need to focus our energy on finding the dragon ball." he said as he checked on his radar.

"w-what about goku?" roshi asked.

"well, he's on this floor, right?" yamcha asked the hermit.

"i dunno, he could've moved while we were busy." roshi answered. "I'm too tired to sense ki. say, why don't you try it, yamcha?"

"who, me?" yamcha said, pointing at himself. "I can't use ki!"

"on the contrary..." roshi said. "...i sensed a hidden aura inside you, waiting to blow up." yamcha couldn't believe what the old man was telling him. he is a martial artist, but not every martial artist can use or sense ki. "...how do I do it?" he asked the old man.

"simple!" roshi said. "just put all of your focus through your eyes" he instructed. yamcha did so. he concentrated so hard that, suddenly, it was as if he had the vision of a ghost. everything was blurry around him, and many small auras appearappeared everywhere, belonging to the knocked out or killed soldiers on the first floor. yamcha checked around until he saw a huge aura running the stairs leading to the second floor.

"i found him!" yamcha said. "he's heading to the second floor!"

"alright." roshi said. "is your dragon ball near?"

"hmm, there's still that dot on top of the radar..." yamcha said, checking on his dragon radar. "...it must be on another floor!"

"then let's go get goku, then we'll get the dragon ball!" roshi suggested.

"ok, but I'm worried about bulma..." yamcha said.

"don't worry, yamcha!" roshi assured the desert bandit. " she's witty, and a tough cookie! and she's got krillin by her side! she'll be fine!"

yamcha only answered with a smile. then, the young thief and the old hermit got up and climbed the stairs heading to the second floor.

"hey, hermit..." yamcha said.

" hmm?"

"when this is all over...can I become your student?"

 

meanwhile, in The underground lab, Dr. gero was listening to his walkie-talkie. he then dropped it in frustration. android 4, the G.I, has been defeated by two of the intruders. while android 4 was weak compared to the others, gero didn't expect this to happen. no worries, though: the other androids are far more competent...especially the beast he unleashed known as 13...

suddenly, he heard a sound...

footsteps.

gero couldn't believe it! the intruders have somehow found his underground lab!

but he wasn't nervous. not one bit. he was in fact confident. and smiling sinisterly.

"heh heh heh, come, bulma briefs! come get your foolish dad's notes..." Dr. gero whispered to himself as he pressed a button on a controller...

END OF CHAPTER

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh...
> 
> you were expecting some funny rant on something DB-related?
> 
> huh...
> 
> ah shit...
> 
> huh, broly has poorer taste than broccoli?
> 
> ....
> 
>  
> 
> damn it...
> 
> t-thank you for reading!
> 
> be sure to hit dat kudos button!
> 
> feel free to share your opinion on the story!
> 
> .....
> 
> .....
> 
> ...yeah....


	20. into the lair of prometheus

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> as bulma and krillin are avoiding general blue, bulma remembered that his father's notes on ki were still in gero's lab. the duo would enter the lair of the mad scientist, where they learn some shocking truths about gero's ambitions, and where they will have a final confrontation with the narcissist general blue!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Following is not for profit. it is strictly a fan work meant for personal amusement. Dragon ball, dragon ball z and dragon ball super is property of Akira toriyama, toyotaro, shueisha, Toei animation and shonen jump. please support the official release.
> 
> Some ideas from this fanfic are taken from Lawrence Simpson, AKA: Masakox of teamfourstar fame. check out his what-ifs, they're pretty interesting!

bulma and krillin continued running in the cave in the muscle tower basement, doing their best to avoid their pursuer, general blue. while bulma was completely focused on her running, krillin looked like he had a question in his mind.

"hey, bulma..." krillin called the purple-haired scientist. "...why are we still in the cave? goku escaped to the first floor, remember?"

"yeah, I know..." bulma answered. "...but we still need to find gero's lab."

"why?" krillin asked.

"my dad's notes on ki, remember?" bulma said.

" oh, right!" krillin realised what she was talking about.

" goku can take care of himself." bulma said. "besides, he's likely to bump into yamcha, so he'll be fine!" she said as she and the bald monk continued running. then, they stopped upon seeing a dark tunnel with almost zero lighting. they looked around and saw that there was no way out, it was a dead end.

"well...that must be the entrance to gero's lab." bulma said, cold sweat running down her temple in nervousness at what awaits beyond the entrance.

"i-i-i have a bad feeling about this!" krillin said, shaking like a linguini. "there c-could be traps, yknow?"

"i know..." bulma said. "...but it's either we move forward into the unknown or get caught by the blue guy pursuing us."

"...looks like we've got no choice, then." krillin said, audibly gulping.

the duo then summoned their courage and headed down towards the entrance. it was so dark in there, that they couldn't even see each other! bulma, having enough of this darkness (in part due to being afraid of it), brought out her dragon radar and used it as a source of light. there were small pieces of ice around the walls and the roof of the cave, with many ice picks forming.

when bulma pointed her dragon radar's light forward, both she and krillin shouted in terror as they came face to face with machine gun turrets!

...only to calm down and be confused, as the turrets weren't even active!

" huh? w-why aren't they firing at us?" krillin asked, not sure what was going on.

"t-they're deactivated. how strange..." bulma said, even more confused than the bald monk himself.

"s-s-so what's the catch, then? there's no way gero would let us in his lab just like that!" krillin reasoned.

"looks like whatever the trap is, we won't find out..." bulma's dragon radar then highlight a huge steel door, with the words "authorized personnel only" shown in the middle of it. "...until we actually get in."

the duo just stood nervous in front of the menacing steel door in front of them, not sure if they should open it. krillin went towards it, feeling the metal door to see if there isn't any traps. "...no traps here, either..." krillin said, before pushing the door, opening it slightly. "...its not even locked! I'm telling you, its too goid to be true!" krillin told the purple-haired scientist.

"keep your eyes peeled, krillin." bulma warmed the bald monk as they slowly, cautiously entered the lab...with general blue watching them in the distance!

upon entering Dr. gero's lab, bulma and krillin were amazed at how huge it was: it almost spread through the entire cave. there was many pieces of technology taking lots of space: computers, tanks full of liquids, big monitors and, most curiously, containment pods, each numbered from 1 to 13. in the middle of the computers was gero's desk.

"woah, its huge!" krillin said, amazed by the sheer size of the lab.

"gero is not here, though..." bulma remarked.

" in fact, nobody's here!" krillin realised. "this lab's empty!"

"stay on your guard, krillin, and stay close." the purple haired scientist advised the bald monk. they then went to gero's desk, opening and emptying every single drawer, going through piles of files and documents before finally finding the notes written by bulma's father. "there they are!" bulma shouted as she grabbed hold of the notes. "alright, now let's get outta h-"

"bulma, you should check this out!" krillin said, holding a file in his hands. he gave it to the purple-haired scientist. on the file was written "cybernetics-evolution of mankind" on a white font. bulma, intrigued, read the content inside it.

what she found in it was absolutely horrifying, making her pale as a ghost. 

"oh my God..."

"i know, right?" krillin said. "how can somebody do such disgusting things?" he asked, dumbfounded by what he read.

"...goku is in deep trouble!" bulma said, now even more worried at what gero was gonna do to goku once he captured him...

BANG!

a bullet flew by bulma 's face, giving her a small cut on her left cheek. startled by that bullet, bulma and krillin hid behind a computer. they then looked up and saw general blue armed with a berreta pistol! he looked like he wasn't fooling around!

" I'm sick and tired of you pests!" blue groaned. "now, you have nowhere to hide!"

"bulma, create a diversion!" krillin whispered to her purpl-haired frined.

"what? he's gonna shoot me!" bulma whispered back.

" just pretend you're surrendering!" he suggested.

"Heh, Heh, I know you're planning something!" blue teasingly said. "if you don't want me to blow a hole on your foreheads, you better surrender now!" he ordered menacingly.

"i yield!" bulma shouted, outing her hands in the air and moving in front of the general. blue, however, wasn't impressed.

" where is the baldie?" he asked.

"don't worry, he's coming." bulma assured him.

"i said surrender now, not in 5 minutes!" blue said.

"yeah, I dunno, he's always slow." bulma said, turning around to face the comouter. "hey, krillin, move your ass!" bulma shouted at the computer.

uknown to general blue, krillin was coming...right behind him! the bald monk then delivered a thunderous headbutt on blue's back, knocking him down and dropping his gun, which bulma immediately grabbed.

krillin and general blue then began fighting. krillin was surprised at the fact that general blue was actually a better fighter than he thought. the general managed to counter his attacks using his krav maga style, which focuses on effective counter-attacking. this allowed blue to gain the upper hand, landing clean blows on the bald monk.

krillin, upon seeing that his opponent was not one to be messed with, kicked things up a gear. he ran towards him, screaming.

"ha! you're that ready to die, boy?" blue taunted, ready to counter.

then, suddenly, krillin disappeared from existence!

"huh? w-w-where did he go?" blblue looked everywhere, trying to find the bald monk...only for krillin to suddenly appear and kick him right on the nose! 

blue was knocked down again. he never saw the afterimage strike coming! in fact, he's never heard of the afterimage strike before!

"haha! how's that, ya bastard? krillin taunted, confidently posing his hands on his hips.

blue then slowly got up. he wiped his nose, and saw blood falling down on his left hand! his anger rose as he realised that a little kid managed to hurt him!

"you...hurt me..."

"yeah, so what? you want more?" krillin cockily said.

" You put your hands on me!" he said, putting his hand in front his his bleeding nose.

"yeah, so what? and its my foot that hit ya, not my hands!" krillin said.

"AARGH!! HOW DISGUTING!! YOU TOUCHED ME!! YOU RUINED MY PURE, BEAUTIFUL BODY WITH YOUR FILTH HANDS!!" blue screamed and cried in anger as he went on his knees, cursing the heavens.

"...he's not germophobic, he's a narcissist..." both krillin and bulma dully reacted to this circus.

then, suddenly, general blue looked dead into krillin's eyes. a shiny light blinded krillin! after the light disappeared, krillin tried to rejoin bulma...only to find out he couldn't move! "w-what the..."

"hehe, you fell right into it!" blue said.

"k-krillin! get out of the way!" bulma shouted, in vain.

"it's no use!" blue said. "with my psychic powers, I can paralyse people when I look at them in the eyes!"

"a psychic?" bulma said in her head.

"hahaha! you'll pay for ruining my perfect beauty! DIE!!!" blue shouted as he grabbed his army knife and lunged at krillin.

then suddenly...

BANG BANG!!

general blue suddenly tumbled on the ground, grabbing both his right leg and his back in pain. "W-who shot me???" blue looked around, groaning in pain as he realise that it was bulma who fired the gun, his own gun that she grabbed from the ground! "W-what?? how is this poss-"

"i may not be a soldier, but i know how to use a gun!" bulma said with a cocky smile. she then went towards krillin. "krillin! how can I make you move?" bulma wondered, trying to do anything to make him move again. she then pushed him in frustration and, as he hit the floor, krillin grabbed his head in pain. "good, you can move again!" bulma exclaimed.

"whew, thanks bulma! I thought I was a goner, for sure!" krillin said.

"i told you at the tournament, big guy: never underestimate a girl!" bulma said, giving krillin a light punch on his shoulder. the duo laughed together.

suddenly, their attention went towards the crawling general blue, as he was crawling like a larva due to his bullet wounds.

"grr, y-you won't get away with this!" blue growled, desperately trying to get up. however, he was in too much pain to do so.

"thanks for keeping us company, handsome!" bulma taunted in a gurly manner. "its a shame you prefer men, cause you're pretty cute!" she said, blowing a kiss.

"y...you bitch...!" those were the only words that blue was able to say before passing out from the pain.

bulma and krillin looked at the unconscious blue.

"uh...is he dead?" bulma asked.

"maybe..." krillin said, feeling that she actually managed to kill someone. "...he won't be missed, that's for sure!"

"yeah...as much as I hate seeing people die...i'd be glad if he's truly dead!" bulma said.

"i, too, would be glad if he's dead..." a deep voice said, catching the attention of bulma and krillin. that's where the sinister old man known as Dr. gero entered the scene.

"gero..." bulma was on guard, as well as krillin.

" in flesh and bone!" gero exclaimed. "and I see you inherited your father's scientific genius and curiosity, bulma briefs." gero said, looking at bulma.

" you admitting my father's a genius? news of the century!" bulma said sarcastically.

"well, after years of feuding, I gotta let my feelings aside and give him credit!" gero responded back. "after all, who could have the scientific genius to invent such practical devices like the hoi poi capsules? the only downside of that invention is that it doesn't help humanity evolve...at all!"

"as if experimenting on live subjects to turn them into abominations is the key to evolution!" krillin said.

"ah, I see you put your noses in my files..." gero said in an annoyed tone. "...but you're mistaken if you think they are live subjects experimented upon against their will. they are volunteers, who believes, like me, that humanity is ill-prepared to face the future, and they are willingly giving their bodies to science in order for humanity to be properly prepared for what's to come."

" you call kidnapping and restraining your wife and kids "volunteeri-"

"DON'T YOU EVER SPEAK ABOUT THEM!!" Dr. gero suddenly shouted, catching bulma and krillin off guard. "you are getting on my nerves!"

"...what about ki? why are you interested in it?" krillin asked.

"actually, it was my assistant rubi that found these notes." gero corrected. " I have to say, It is a wonderful discovery, both by rubi and by briefs! after I saw that golden energy that your friend the monkey boy emitted at the budokai-"

"you were at the tournament?" krillin asked, surprised.

"yes, as a simple spectator." gero answered. "when I saw the golden energy he emitted, I knew, at this moment that he would be the perfect leader for my cyborg army! and when I'll be able to Infuse ki in my androids and cyborgs, we will be strong enough to counter any possible threat! alas, the monkey boy was smarter than I thought..." gero said,looking at the hole dug inside goku's prison cell.

"haha! serves ya right, old creep!" krillin taunted.

"...no worries though." gero said in a relieved tone. "I will get him soon enough. 13 will catch him."

"13?" both bulma and krillin said at the same time.

"yes, the best android I've ever created!" gero exclaimed. "and, thanks to you fools, he is now even stronger!" he boasted.

"thanks to us? you mean, he's the guy with the baseball cap?" krillin said, before adopting an arrogant attitude "ha! if that guy's your strongest, then goku will eat him alive!" he boasted.

"unfortuantely for you, he's not the 13 you once knew..." gero said, sinisterly.

" what makes you say that?" bulma asked cautiously.

"turn around and take a look for yourself."

bulma and krillin did so...only to come face to face with a MASTODON of an android! it stood almost 8 feet tall, was built like a bull on steroids and it's fake skin was blue like the smurfs! it had red spikes shaped like a haircut and his yellow, iris-less eyes just screamed destruction! bulma and krillin screamed as they were frozen in terror in front of the super android, 13!

"they know too much, 13!" Gero exclaimed at the blue mastodon.

"Dispose of them!"

 

END OF CHAPTER

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you so much for 1500 views and 50 kudos! My GF and i really appreciate your support, your feedback and you giving our story a chance! hope you're enjoying this story as much as we enjoy writing it!


	21. the pacifist android

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> son goku comes face to face with Dr. gero's assistant, rubi, and the scary-looking android 8! however, android 8 refuses to obey ruby's orders! after getting rid of her, goku and the golem are reunited with yamcha and master roshi.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Following is not for profit. it is strictly a fan work meant for personal amusement. Dragon ball, dragon ball z and dragon ball super is property of Akira toriyama, toyotaro, shueisha, Toei animation and shonen jump. please support the official release.
> 
> Some ideas from this fanfic are taken from Lawrence Simpson, AKA: Masakox of teamfourstar fame. check out his what-ifs, they're pretty interesting!

A WHILE AGO...

 

just when son goku thought he was free from the place that Dr. gero guy took him, it turns out that he was far from safe, what with battling the ninja murasaki in his artificial garden and climbing the seemingly endless stairs that led him to the second floor of muscle tower...straight into a huge man resembling frankenstein's monster!

he had short, black hair, had stitches on his forehead and right cheek, was built square like a crustless pizza, his back was slightly hunched and he had big, expressive eyes with tiny black iris in the middle. he had a black coat with matching formal pants and black chic shoes on him.

he was looking intimidatingly at goku, prompting the monkey boy to take a fighting stance, defying the golden in front of him.

then, suddenly, he heard a snobbish, feminine laugh. he leaned to the left to see where that laugh came from. he was surprised to see Dr. gero's assistant, rubi, leaning on the wall, with an amused smile on her face.

" you again?" goku shouted as he went on the defensive. " what did you plan, this time?" he asked the puffy orange haired scientist.

" oh, silly monkey boy!" rubi exclaimed. "you don't stand a chance against our androids!"

"so that's one of these human robot thingies that creepy old man talked about..." goku said, looking at android 8. "...it sure is big, alright!"

"its not just big, it's also really smart!" rubi boasted cockily. "it is our first model equipped with an advanced, adaptive A.I, capable of both sentience and learning from their mistakes, and, due to this complex program, is able to counter any incoming enemy attacks! if you don't wanna get hurt, darling, you should just give up and let us bring you back to the lab!"

goku only answered by smacking his butt while making monkey noise, angering rubi.

"Fine! we'll take you the hard way, then!" said an irritated rubi. "No.8, take him out!" she ordered the golem.

no.8 then looked at goku, and stood still for a couple of seconds. then, he uttered only a single word:

"...no."

completely taken aback by these words, both goku and rubi were confused.

"y...you didn't just say no right now, did ya?" asked an annoyed rubi, who couldn't believe that an android just refused a direct order.

"A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm." no.8 dully said, reciting the first law of robotics.

"W-WHAT?? what is this stupid crap? who told you that?" rubi asked, taken aback by no.8's words.

"you and Dr. gero are me and my brothers's creators, yet you don't know the three laws of robotics?" android 8 asked the puffy haired woman.

"These are just made-up mumbo jumbo from a sci-fi novel!" rubi told the android, sighing. "what's real is that the red ribbon army are the ones who made you! now listen to the parents that bore you!" she ordered him.

"you kidnap innocent people, and torture them in the name of science." no.8 says, catching rubi off-guard. "you claim to be saving humanity. is imposing fear and panic on others really a form of protection?"

"Stop asking questions and take him out!" rubi shouted, pointing at goku.

"i can't do it...sorry." no.8 said. rubi was furious! how dare this piece of junk refuse to obey it's master!

"grr, I knew we shouldn't make our androids sentient..." rubi groaned under her breath while grabbing a remote from her pocket.

" you see that?" rubi asked no.8, pointing at the button of the remote. "we installed remote-controlled bombs inside every single androids in case they become disobedient runts like you! just one press of this button, and BOOM! you instantly turn into a fiery tornado of burned circuitry! you don't want that to happen to you, am I wrong? then TAKE THAT BRAT OUT!!"

 

android 8 closed his eyes and swam deep into his thoughts, under the watchful eyes of both goku and rubi. then, he opened them and came up with an answer:

"...i really can't do anything bad."

goku smiled at the androids response. rubi, however, was anything but happy!

"grr, you traitor! you're nothing but a useless piece of junk!" she said as she lifted her remote and was about to press the self-destruct button. "YOU ARE A DISGRACE! D-"

rubi was suddenly knocked the FUCK out by a thunderous hit from nyoibo, sending her flying into ninja murasaki's garden! the remote subsequently dropped from her had and fell between goku and android 8. goku then smashed the remote to pieces with nyoibo. android 8 stood there, fascinated by the monkey boy he was supposed to capture sympathizing with and helping him.

"thank you for helping me. I'm happy." the big golem dully said without emotion.

"you could've just shut her up yourself, yknow?" goku told him.

"A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm." no. 8 dully repeated the first law of robotics.

"yeah, but it's ok if they're trying to hurt you or your friends." goku answered back, prompting no. 8 to think.

"...A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Laws." no. 8 recited the third law of robotics.

"uh? what laws?" goku asked the golem.

" the three laws of robotics." no. 8 answers. "its a code of conduct for robots devised by humans in order to avoid a potential robot revolution." he explained, confusing goku even more. "it basically prohibits robots from hurting or having any physical contact with a human being."

"even if it's for defending yourself?" goku asked.

"...to tell you the truth, I could defend myself..." no.8 said, looking moody. "...its just that...i don't like hurting others."

"yet you were used by this gero guy to hurt others." goku said.

"alas...it hurts me badly, seeing these innocents and good-willed human beings die by my hands..." no.8's head bowed down in shame. "...but now is not the time to talk. we must get out of here."

"now we're talking!" goku exclaimed. "by the way, what's your name?"

"they call me android no.8." the golem said.

" yeah, I heard that mean girl call you that earlier." goku said. "such a bizzare name! how about I give you another one?"

"what do you suggest?" the android asked.

" hey, I know!" goku exclaimed,looking at no.8's appearance. "I'll call you Frankie!"

"i beg your pardon?" no.8 said, asking for the meaning behind that name.

" yeah, Frankie!" goku said. "cause,you look exactly like frankenstein!" he explained.

" who is frankenstein?" no.8 asked.

"he's a bit like you, actually!" goku told him. "he was created by a mean doctor, just like that gero guy, and at first,evereveryody thought he was mean cause he would hurt others by accident, yet he's actually a really nice guy, who would eventually be accepted by some people, even becoming their friend!"

"you knew this Frankenstein?" the golem asked the monkey boy.

"nah, it's a story my grandpa told me during bedtime. I just thought you were like him, so that's why I called you Frankie!" goku said with a smile.

"frankie..." android 8 said. suddenly, a smile appeared on his face. "...i like that name!"

goku smiled at the golem's approval, and tried giving him a high five...but the android didn't budge.

"...what are you doing?" android 8 asked.

"why, a high five, of course!" goku responded. "you don't know how to do it?"

"high...five?" no. 8 said, hesitantly lifting his hand. goku immediately slapped it, laughing at the same time. no. 8 simply smiled.

suddenly...

"THERE YOU ARE!!"

goku and no.8 turned around to see none other than yamcha and master roshi running towards them!

"Yamcha! master roshi!" goku exclaimed, delighted at seeing familiar, and friendly, faces. yamcha and roshi too were delighted to see goku...however, their smiles turned into a defensive fighting stance as they saw android 8!

"go help bulma and krillin, goku!" yamcha told the monkey boy.

"well take care of that android!" roshi said.

"No no no, he's a friend! he's a friend!" goku exclaimed, putting himself in front of Frankie, confusing the desert bandit and the turtle hermit.

" goku, that's an android! they're here to hurt you!" yamcha said.

 

"A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm." Frankie recited again the first law of robotics. this prompted a surprised reaction from master roshi, who dropped his guard, surprising yamcha. "h-hermit..."

"ooh, the first law of robotics!" master roshi exclaimed in surprise. "interesting that gero built his androids following these laws."

"actually, I am the only android who follows these laws." Frankie corrected. "I started following them after realising they built me and my brothers as tools of war."

"i see..." roshi said, rubbing his beard. "...though it can be easy to find loopholes in those laws."

"indeed..." Frankie murmured. "...but I still follow them strictly by the letter, no matter what kind of loophole they would use to force me to do something I don't want to!"

"an android...with a conscience?" yamcha said, dropping his guard.

"see? Frankie's a friend!" goku exclaimed.

"Frankie?" both yamcha and master roshi said.

"that's the new name given to me by son goku." Frankie answered, pointing at the monkey boy. "I used to be known as android no.8 in the past. son goku chose that name be-"

"cause you look like Frankenstein? no offense, of course!" yamcha wondered.

"indeed, because I look like him." frankie confirmed. "you know this Frankenstein, too?"

"yes." roshi answered. "but actually, frankenstein is not the monster's name. it's the name of the scientist that created him. the actual monster has no name." the hermit corrected, surprising goku.

"woah! you know Frankenstein, master?" goku asked the old man.

"oh yes!" roshi answered. "it's one of my favorite books, actually!"

"hehe, Frankie might look like a bad guy, but he's actually a good guy who managed to make friends, despite his scary looks and weird demeanor, just like the real Frankenstein!" goku said.

"...i don't think frankenstein ends like this..." both roshi and yamcha thought, sweat dropping from their temples in dull reactions to goku's incorrect facts. still, they were relieved that the android known as Frankie was actually harmless.

"hey, yamcha, you mentioned bulma and krillin, earlier." goku said,rememebring that scene. " are they here, too?"

" yeah, there heading towards Dr. gero's lab." yamcha answered.

" what? aww man, and they must be thinking I'm still down there!" goku said, bowing his head.

"actually, they know you escaped." yamcha corrected him. "its just that the notes Dr. briefs compiled on your training with krillin is still in there."

"oh, really?" goku said. "then they're certainly going to need my help!" the monkey boy then looked at Frankie. "hey Frankie, ya comin with me?"

"i'll help you, son goku." Frankie answered.

"cool!" goku exclaimed. "what about you, guys? where are you going?" he asked roshi and yamcha.

"we're going after the dragon ball." roshi answered.

"there's a dragon ball here, too?"

" yeah, but we can't seem to find it." yamcha answered, looking at his dragon radar, with the orange blip still appearing on the top edge of the screen. "it seems that it's not on this floor, either..."

"i know where the red ribbon guard their treasure." Frankie said.

" really? where?" yamcha asked hurriedly.

"it's in the secret room on the 5th floor." Frankie explained. "No one but commander black and chairman red has access to it. nobody knows what's inside the secret room

"i assume the key to that room is in chairman red's possession?" roshi asked.

"correct." Frankie confirmed. "it's in the command room on the top floor, in a secret compartment in chairman red's office."

"thanks." yamcha said. "though obviously, they won't just let us knock on the front door and let us enter..."

"there are air ducts everywhere on the base, if that can help you." Frankie suggested.

"no...i'll get captured!" roshi suggested, confusing everyone.

"well, it's true that I have handcuffs on me..." yamcha said, grabbing a pair of them from the belt of his stolen soldier uniform. "...but why?"

"the red ribbon army belongs to an old rival of mine." roshi explained, intriguing the gang. "they would surely let us in if you pretend to have captured me, yamcha."

"who's that rival, master?" goku asked, curious.

"his name is shen." roshi answered. "we used to be old buddies, way back when we trained under the same master, mutaito." however, as time marched on, we drifted further and further apart, turning into two completely different person. eventually, we engaged into conflict, and now, we are enemies."

"friends...now enemies..." goku was stunned at roshi's explanations. how in the world could friends turn into enemies?

"and what would faking your capture have anything to do wi-"

"shen is the founder and leader of the red ribbon!" roshi revealed.

" really? I thought it was chairman red!" Frankie said.

"nah, he's just that, a chairman!" roshi said. "anyways, shen spread his hatred of me and the turtle school to his entire army. if you pretend to Have captured me, yamcha, they will bow down to you, I can assure ya! they'll even have you take a part of the treasure with you as a prize for your "outstanding contributions"!"

"woah..." yamcha was amazed at what the hermit just said. "...i can enter that secret room...and take the dragon ball!"

"...and to make sure that it's not too easy for you, you'll surely be accompanied by someone so you don't make any moves..." roshi guessed.

"i can confirm all of this." Frankie said.

"right...okay, that's a plan!" yamcha agreed woth roshi's plan.

"yosh!" goku exclaimed. "alright, I'll go find bulma and krillin! let's go, Frankie!"

"let's." Frankie answered with a smile as the unlikely duo went downstairs to help goku's friends, while yamcha put handcuffs on roshi.

the two men then went towards the 6th and top floor. every time soldiers looked at then, they were in awe at the sight of their dreaded enemy, muten roshi, being captured! it's as if yamcha was this almighty super soldier that just did the impossible.

he...liked that feeling.

and then, they finally reached the top floor. only a huge steel door with the words "command center" written on it.

"well, this is it..." roshi whispered under his breath.

yamcha was gulping in nervousness. he wondered what was going on inside that command center...

 

"mr. chairman, can I talk to you?"

the intimidating ebony-skinned man known as commander black asked his boss, who then turned his tall chair around to face him. in fact, the chairman was not even tall enough to have his head make even half the chair, as he was a midget! he had an eyepatch on his left eye, a thin mustache the same color as his slick back hair, which was a crimson shade of red. he was wearing a suit and the, and he had a gruff look on his face, smoke coming out of his pipe. he looked eerily similar to a redhead Peter dinklage.

"whaddya want? we've got intruders in our base and ya wanna ask questions?" chairman red was in a foul mood.

"...can I change my codename?" commander black asked the chairman, confusing the short redhead.

"...why?" he simply asked the ebony-skinned commander. "is there anything wrong with it? cause I don't see anything!"

"really?" commander black answered, as if he was offended. "you don't see anything wrong? cause it's a big-ass problem, and it's right in front of ya!"

"get to the point!" said chairman red while sighing. "we're being invaded, commander! make it quick!"

"the point is...i am commander black, and I'm...well, black!"

" yeah, so what?" chairman red dully asked. "it was the last name available."

"well, don't you think it's...i dunno, a bit...devaluating?"

"...you serious?" red was becoming annoyed. "that's not racist at all! black is literally a color! and when we call you comm. black, we refer to your color!"

"......"

 

"....okay, yeah, I see why it would cause a problem..." the midget bowed his head down in shame while sighing. "...so, which color do you want to use, from now on?"

"i don't have a clue..." the former comm. black answered. "...what do you suggest?"

 

"hold on, a color that isn't used yet..." chairman red started thinking hard about finding another color. "...ooh, I know! how about commander Brown?"

"...fuck you!"

"okay, okay, geez..." chairman red began thinking again. "...alright! from now on, you are Comm. pink!"

"...why am I comm. pink?" comm. pink asked, getting annoyed.

" cause I said so! now go repel the invaders!" red told him.

"i wanna be comm. purple!" the ebony-skinned man suggested.

" No, you are NOT Comm. purple!" red told him, very annoyed. "that weird Chinese ninja has already chosen this color! YOU. ARE. COMM. PINK!"

"murasaki's actually japan-"

"JAPANESE, CHINESE, BURMESE, DOESN'T MATTER!" red shouted. "now stop all that cheese and protect th-"

"how about comm. azure?" the commander suggested.

"...that's blue..." chairman red resppnded.

"nah, nah, nah, azure's a DIFFERENT shade of blue!" comm. black corrected his boss.

"IT'S STILL FUCKING BLUE!!" red shouted in anger. "speaking of which, why isn't general blue responding? dammit, send reinforcements!!"

"...hey, how about comm. emera-"

"FINE, COMMANDER EMERALD, THATS YOUR NEW NAME, NOW GET YOUR ASS OUTTA HERE AND PROTECT THE BASE AT ONCE, OR ELSE YOU'RE FIRED!!"

"you can fire people from a terrorist group?"

"DISMIIIISSED!!"

"commander black! this is lieutenant turquoise!" turquoise voice came out of the newly-baptised comm. emerald's walkie-talkie.

"its comm. emerald now, lieutenant!" he corrected him. "what is it?"

"the intruder has been captured! I repeat, the turtle hadmit has been captured!" turquoise joyfully exclaimed.

" the turtle hermit? really?" both chairman red and comm. emerald asked, looking as if they won the world cup.

"Yes! a young private is coming towards the command center right now! he has handcuffed the hermit!" turquoise confirmed.

" good! let him know he'll be handsomely compensated!" comm. emerald proudly stated, while chairman red was spinning on his chair chanting hallelujah.

"open the door to my office!" chairman red ordered comm. emerald. "I'm gonna welcome him personally! oooh, the boss is gonna be so happy about this!" he said while rubbing his hands. 

meanwhile, outside the office, yamcha and roshi were growing inpatient. that's where the door to the command center opened, a bright light aging all over the door frame.

"well, this is it." roshi whispered.

"no turning back..." yamcha whispered, as both the desert bandit and the turtle hermit entered the command center...

 

END OF CHAPTER

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yknow when I said in another chapter that one of Dr. gero's androids was mentally challenged? I was talking about android 8, cause he looked derpy.
> 
> but then, I reread the manga...
> 
> boy, was I wrong about him!
> 
> turns out he's the only android who follows the three laws of robotics by Isaac Asimov.
> 
> so i basically made him a walking reference to I, Robot.
> 
> the book, not the will Smith movie...
> 
> ...okay, I only know the will Smith movie...
> 
> but I'm gonna read the book! promised!


	22. Unstoppable beast! super android 13!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> bulma and krillin are in deep trouble, as the super android, 13, is pursuing them! just as all hope seemed lost, goku and android 8, Frankie, arrive at their rescue! however, unbeknownst to the monkey boy, he will face his toughest opponent yet!
> 
> meanwhile, yamcha and roshi finally enters the command office, where they will come face to face with the newly-baptized commander emeraldand the volatile chairman red!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Following is not for profit. it is strictly a fan work meant for personal amusement. Dragon ball, dragon ball z and dragon ball super is property of Akira toriyama, toyotaro, shueisha, Toei animation and shonen jump. please support the official release.
> 
> Some ideas from this fanfic are taken from Lawrence Simpson, AKA: Masakox of teamfourstar fame. check out his what-ifs, they're pretty interesting!

"they know too much, 13!" Dr. gero shouted as the titanic super android known as 13 stood before a terrified bulma and krillin. "Dispose of them!"

13 then casually stepped back and opened his left hand, revealing a laser cannon in the middle of his palm. the laser cannon was charging up its shot, making bulma and krillin tremble.

the bald monk then closed his eyes and put his hands on his head in fear.

then, suddenly, a bright light reflected on krillin's head, blinding the super android! 13 stepped back and put his hand to cover his eyes.

"RUN!!" bulma shouted as the duo did just that, leaving the lab woth Dr. briefs's notes on ki on hand. gero was cursing under his breath.

"Dammit! after them, 13!!" gero ordered his greatest creation. 13 then looked at the door, and he was pissed!

meanwhile, bulma and krillin kept on running in the cave, hoping to catch the stairs that leads to the first floor hangar. however, they quickly over a gear up when they saw android 13 bursting out of the cave walls at full speed! and he ran closer and closrr to them! bulma and krillin jumped to the right, prompting the charging 13 to crash head first into the wall, the roof of the cave beginning to crumble. as bulma and krillin ran up the stairs, 13 removed his head from the wall and ripped apart the pieces of rock around his neck, as he charged up his speed to the maximum.

meanwhile, bulma and krillin got up to the first floor. they kept themselves hidden so as to not be caught by passing red ribbon soldiers.

"w-w-was that really the guy with the baseball cap?" krillin said, shook by what just happened.

"if that's what gero really is capable of..." bulma was very nervous at what she just saw. if gero was able to build an unstoppable force like that, imagine super androids like 13 with no infused in their systems!

"...we need to find the others and get outta here!" bulma said, takong her walkie talkie from her pocket. "yamcha! yamcha! can you hear me?" she asked. 

only silence came...

"no...no no no NO!" bulma whispered. something must have happened to yamcha! "...lets go, krillin!" she said, grabbing the monk by his wrist and running towards the elevator, pushing the button and waiting for it to come up. when the door opened, they...found themselves face to face with android 13!! screaming I surprise, they immediately turned around and ran, with 13 following them by walking fast towards them. he began firing his laser cannons at them, the duo avoiding them like the plague as the hangar was getting obliterated by 13's lasers.

bulma and krillin tried to run towards the stairs that led to the second floor...only for the roof to crumble into them as 13 shot rockets to close access to them! 13 then shot rockets everywhere, mailing the roof fall down around them so that bulma and krillin had nowhere to escape! bulma and krillin just stood there,paralysed with fear and not knowing what to do as android 13 walked menacingly towards them, ready to fire it's infernal lasers to put an end to their misery...

then suddenly...

"HAAAAA!!!"

a kamehameha wave suddenly struck 13 right on hos left cheek, making it step back in surprise, almost fall I g down on his butt. he then got up and, along with bulma and krillin, turned around to see who was responsible.

it was Son goku! he was accompanied by a weird frankenstein-looking person. and the monkey boy looked like he wanted to fight!

"GOKU!!" both bulma and krillin said with extrem joy, repieces at the sight of their friend being there to save them.

but goku didn't even reacted to them screaming his name. he was so serious that he looked as if he was ready to tear android 13's head off!

"be careful, son goku." Frankie warned him "he is extremely dangerous, and he's equipped with the most advanced A.I of any androids ever created."

"thanks, Frankie. i'll keep that in mind." goku calmly reassured his friend as he walked towards the blue mastodon. Frankie then stationed himself besides bulma and krillin, placing himself so that he is ready to interfere if goku ever gets in trouble.

"w-who are you?" bulma asked the weird frankenstein monster.

"i am Frankie, formerly known as android 8." Frankie introduced himself "I am goku's friend. I don't serve Dr. gero anymore."

"Heh heh heh, even if you still served me, you'd be too weak to be of any use!" Dr gero suddenly appeared on top of one of the pillars. "you're lucky that monkey boy saved your ass, otherwise you'd be where you belong: at the junkyard!"

" even your androids are revolting against you and the red ribbon!" goku shouted. "your reign of terror is over, ya brutes!"

"Heh...famous last words, monkey boy!" gero taunted. "once 13 kills you, Ill have so much fun turning your dead body into the leader of my cyborg army! DESTROY HIM, 13!!"

upon receiving the instruction, 13 immediately pounced on goku, who barely avoided him as the super android punched a huge hole on the floor! usually, the big guys goku fought were slow-moving, allowing the monkey boy to trick them using his speed. he wasn't expecting 13 to move this fast! he tried striking him using his nyoibo, but 13 grabbed it mid-strike! he then threw goku away into a piece of the collapsed roof, slamming hard on it. he got up, only to witness something he thought impossible: the super android 13 broke Nyoibo In half with his pure strength! everybody was shocked, except gero, who was laughing subtly.

" silly monkey boy!" gero taunted. "No magical bullshit can do anything against the power...OF SCIENCE!!"

a sinister smirk suddenly appeared on 13's face, as if he was provoking goku into attacking him. goku was mad...really mad!

" NO!! DON'T PLAY HIS GAME, GOKU!!" krillin shouted.

"damn you...THAT WAS MY GRANDPA'S STAFF!!" goku screamed in anger, as a big blue aura appeared around him, catching everybody except the smiling 13 off guard due to how much ki he was producing. the monkey bog then dashed at 13, delivering a merciless onslaught of punches and kicks...but the super android was not even flinching! he just stood there, smiling as if he was laughing at goku's useless assault. meanwhile, Dr. gero was looking on proudly.

then, goku attempted a kick aimed at 13's head. but 13 catches goku's legs in mid-air, winds up his left fist and delivers a THUNDEROUS punch right in goku's dick!

suddenly, every thing went in slow motion for goku, as he winced and moaned in pain and in a high pitch after getting decked in the dick. he saw the horrified faces of his friends, Dr. gero proudly looking on and 13 doing his evil smirk, as if he was enjoying inflicting pain on others.

suddenly, 13 threw goku woth full strength, sending the monkey boy flying. even more suddenly, the super android ran towards the flying goku, actually keeping up with him! he then delivered a relentless juggle combo, delivering punches, kicks and knews before sending him further flying with a huge haymaker, sending him crashing into the wall. 13 then placed his palm laser cannons facing each other, charging their lasers to create a huge energy ball!

" NO!! GOKUUU!!"bulma screamed in terror.

" YOU SHOULD NEVER HAVE DEFIED ME, YOU LOWLIFE TRASH!! BEGONE!!" Dr. gero shouted as 13 was about to shoot his death ball...

...when, suddenly, Frankie grabbed 13's waist and delivered a BIG German suplex!! he then jumped in the air and went for the elbow drop...

 

...but 13 got up in the air and delivered an uppercut right on frankie's chin! he then kneed him in the guy before putting his head between his legs, then lift him up neck first on his shoulders while grabbing and splitting his legs wide! he then fell down as Frankie was about to fall victim to the kinniku buster!!

"TEIAAAH!!" shouted krillin as he jumped towards the super android to save Frankie...only to be met with a laser blast to the face from 13!

Dr. gero was laughing at the inevitable demise of the former android 8 as bulma wondered what she was going to do...then, she saw Frankie trying to get himself out of trouble. she then grabbed her gun and, suddenly, shot Dr. gero in the shoulder!

"AOWW!!"

when he heard his master scream in pain, 13 was distracted. it allowed Frankie to get out of the hold, grabbed 13 by the waist, pulled each other upside down and spun In the air, before both of them crashed violently heads first into the ground, creating a huge crater!

That's right, Frankie just did the Izuna drop!!

"grr, you bitch!" Dr. gero cursed as he grabbed his shoulder in pain.

"Down! on the ground, ya old fart!" bulma ordered, pointing her gun at the old scientist.

"grr, how dare you call me an old fa-"

"GET DOWN!" she ordered, firing a warning shot. "you gave us enough trouble, ya creep! and now, you have no android to fall a  
back on! you're going to jail!" she exclaimed.

gero, however, only answered by giggling.

"whats so funny?" krillin asked as he and Frankie joined bulma.

"whats funny? you thinking you already won!" gero said, as behind the trio, 13 got up amidst the smoke! and he was still standing, albeit breathing a bit harder.

"W-WHAT??" everybost except gero shouted. "How the hell did he survived that?" krillin asked.

"HAHAHAHA!! 13's titanium skin makes him harder than metal! he is unbreakable! you don't stand a chance against us!" gero boasted as 13 blasted the trio away with a death ball. as the trio struggled to get up, gero and 13 walked towards them, 13 charging his laser cannon arm.

" now you're finally back where you belong, you Lowlife scums! now down to your new master!" Dr. gero boasted as 13 smirked.

then, suddenly, they heard footsteps behind them and a child moaning in pain.

gero and 13 turned around and were flabbergasted to see son goku standing up! even after receiving one hell of a beating, the monkey boy still got up! he had bruises and cut all over his face and body, his gi was torn, and he was bleeding from the left side of his mouth, and he was breathing hard, but he was still alive! and, above all,he was smiling, as if he wanted to fight some more!

"G...goku!" bulma said, not believing that the monkey boy was still standing and smiling! is he really human?

"H-HOW?? how are you still standing??" gero asked, not believing what he was seeing.

"Heh heh...was that the best you can do?" goku dully said, angering Both Dr. gero and 13. the super android was about to attack him when he was suddenly attacked by both krillin and Frankie at the same time! Frankie and krillin then joined goku's side, placing themselves to protect him. even bulma came and joined the boys in goku's protection!

"hands off my best bud, ya bastards!" krillin said.

 

"if y'all want a piece of goku...you have to come through us first!" bulma shouted at Dr. gero and 13, surprising them with this open defiance...

 

MEANWHILE...

yamcha and roshi stood still as the door to the command center opened. then, they were greeted with the sight of the newly-baptised commander emerald greeting them.

"Who's hot shit now, old coot?" emerald dully taunted the captured hermit in his face. "as for you, young man..."he then faced yamcha. "...excellent work! the boss is waiting for you."

"thank you, uh..."

"commander emerald, that's my name." emerald said.

"weren't you commander black?" roshi asked.

" yeah, but I changed codenames." the ebony-skinned man explained.

"hohoho, so you did follow my advice!" roshi exclaimed before being tased by emerald, who then guided yamcha to chairman red's office. upon seeing what the chairman looked like, yamcha and roshi tried their best not to laugh at the redhead midget.

"ahh, finally, after so many decades, the turtle hermit himself is finally under our mercy!" chairman red said enthusiastically before turning his attention on yamcha. " and to think a private would be the one to capture him! we are very proud of you, private...?"

"uh, Brown, sir!" yamcha exclaimed, remembering that the red ribbon members refer to themselves by color.

"brown...thats weird, I thought that name was not taken..." chairman red said, making yamcha and roshi sweat. "...bah, it might have changed, considering we are welcoming new recruits nowadays...and you must be one of them, as I've never seen your face around here before."

"y-yes, sir! it's my first day of work, sir!" yamcha said nervously.

" and you captured our worst enemy on your first day! I think we got ourselves a diamond in the rough, Mr. chairman!" comm. emerald said.

"indeed!" red exclaimed. "we will gladly reward you for your excellent work, private! we will guide you to the secret treasure room, where you will choose anything you want!"

"sir, yes sir! it's an honor, sir!" yamcha exclaimed.

"thats the spirit!" chairman red exclaimed. "haha, we got roshi hostage! no one is gonna stop me from obtaining the dragon balls!" he boasted.

"you mean us, Mr. chairman." emerald corrected.

"what do you mean, us?" chairman red asked.

"...i beg your pardon?" comm. emerald asked his boss.

chairman red then suddenly laughed, confusing everyone in his office. the laugh went on for a good 15 seconds before red calmed himself and looked a comm. emerald with disappointment in his eyes. "...i thought you were on my side, emerald!" he said, all sad.

"...whats going on, Mr. chairman?" comm. emerald was becoming suspicious. so was yamcha and roshi.

"whats going on?" red rhetorically asked. "what's going on is that you, my most trusted officer, don't even know why you're unser my services!"

emerald, yamcha and roshi were even more confused.

"...well, I mean...we're collecting the dragon balls for our boss, the crane emperor, right?" comm. emerald asked.

"the emperor?" yamcha whispered on roshi's ears.

"thats weird...shen is not an emperor of anything...last time I saw him, anyways." roshi whispered back to yamcha.

"pff, who told you that?" answered red, shocking comm. emerald. " I'm getting these dragon balls!"

"b-but Mr. chairman, you are aware that you're disobeying orders, right?" comm. emerald said.

"Yeah...so what?" red answered, shocking the ebony-skinned commander even more. "i dont give a crap about some child empereror's desires! i wanna be tall, goddamit!" red exclaimed.

"be...tall?" commander emerald asked, not believing what he just heard.

"child emperor?" both yamcha and roshi said to each other. who could the midget be talking about?

" Yeah, tall!" red answered emerald. " but of course, you think it's ridiculous! that's because you've never been a midget! you don't know what it's like, being ridiculed...being not just a fucking midget, but a redhead and a virgin, too! once you maggots get me the dragon balls, I'll wish to become tall, dark and handsome, so i can finally become a real man!!"

yamcha and roshi kept themselves from laughing at such an idiotic and petty reason to gather the dragon balls.

"...look, sir..." emerald said, flabbergasted by what he just heard. "...i recognize that you made a decision..." he said, with red having hope on his face. hope that emerald understood him and would help him achieve his dreams.

"...but,given that it's a stupid-ass decision, I've elected to ignore it!" emerald said, crushing red's hopes.

"b...but why? you can't do that!" red said.

" and you can't send our troops to sacrifice themselves for such a selfish reason, either!" emerald suddenly shouted.

'b...but I'm your boss!" red exclaimed.

" Really? cause you're not actin like one!" emerald said, hurting red emotionally. "master shen tasked you to build this army, and that's what you did! you turned it into the most feared terrorist group in the world! you literally tellin me that you have put the world on its knees, grabbing it by the balls, just so you wanna get laid? you're nothin but a pathetic, narcissistic Muthafucka!!"

"SHUT UP!! I'M THE LEADER OF THE RED RIBBON I DO WHATEVER THE FUCK I WANT!!"

BANG!!!

suddenly, chairman red stood in his chair, lifeless, a bullet hole on his forehead gashing out blood all over his face as commander emerald shot him, terrifying yamcha and roshi.

"it's time this army needs a leader who knows what the army's real purpose is!" emerald coldly said as he threw chairman red's lifeless body through the open window and into the white snow below, tainting it red with his blood. he then wiped the chair and sat on itit,staring at the terrified yamcha and roshi. "ah yes, your reward!" he said as he got up and went towards yamcha. "sorry for the mess, we have a...change in management!"

"i-i-its alright, sir!" said a nervous and sweating yamcha.

"what are ya gonna do to me?" roshi asked the new leader of the red ribbon.

"oh, you'll see...we prepared something special for ya!" emerald menacingly said. "now, young man, time to get your rew-"

 

"YAMCHA! YAMCHA! CAN YOH HEAR ME?"

bulma's voice suddenly burster out of yamcha's walkie talkie...

 

it was at this moment...

that yamcha knew...

he fucked up...

"...what was that just now?" comm emerald asked.

"N-N-NOTHING, GENERAL EMERALD!"

"its commander emerald."

"I-I-I-ITS NOTHING!! IT'S JUST INTERFERENCE IN THE NETWORK!!"

"oh my fucking god..." roshi bowed his head down.

suddenly, commander emerald pressed a button on a pas on chairman red's desk, making the floor open a huge hole where both yamcha and master roshi fell into.

after they crash landed, yamcha and roshi got up and looked around. they were in a dark, spacious chamber that was filled with treasures of all kinds. vases, lamps, piles of gold and countless other precious objects were piled on one another.

"Thats...the treasure room?" yamcha asked.

" the dragon ball must be in there!" roshi said.

"Indeed, this is the treasure room and the dragon ball is in there!" commander emerald exclaimed from above. "and it'll stay there, as this room is gonna be your grave! android 10, kill them!" he ordered before leaving and the floor closed.

"android 10?" yamcha and roshi said...until the entire room shook, as rising from the pile of treasure stood a giant, intimidating bald black man wearing sunglasses, a sleeveless t-shirt and black jeans, looking ready to wreak havoc!

yamcha and roshi what their pants as they were now stuck in a possibly helpless situation! meanwhile, a battered and bruised goku amid being protected by his friends against Dr. gero and the super android 13! our friends are in deep trouble! will they get out of their predicaments alive? will the red ribbon be stopped?

Find out next time, On Dragon Ball!!

END OF CHAPTER

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> am I the only one who is disappointed in dragon ball fighterz?
> 
> i mean, don't get me wrong, the game is awesome and fun to play and everything, but I dunno...i expected something else.
> 
> i don't expect a simple fighting game that was clearly casualised.
> 
> i basically wanted guilty gear with a dragon ball skin.
> 
> and I also wanted a diverse roster, where you can play as unusual characters, like roshi, bulma, chi-chi, videl, Mr. Satan, Weiss, king kai, Mr. popo, tao paipai and even arale, raditz and dabura!
> 
> but no, fans only want moar gokus, Moar vegetas, moar brolies, moar gogetas, moar explosions and ki blasts and more stupid-ass transformations.
> 
> "sigh" I hate DB fans sometimes...
> 
> thank you for reading!


	23. Explosive Finale! the end of the red ribbon!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> at last, the thrilling conclusion to the red ribbon army arc! will the gang get out of muscle tower alive? will goku and his friends defeat Dr. gero and the seemingly-unstoppable android 13? will yamcha and roshi get the dragon ball and find a way out?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Following is not for profit. it is strictly a fan work meant for personal amusement. Dragon ball, dragon ball z and dragon ball super is property of Akira toriyama, toyotaro, shueisha, Toei animation and shonen jump. please support the official release.
> 
> Some ideas from this fanfic are taken from Lawrence Simpson, AKA: Masakox of teamfourstar fame. check out his what-ifs, they're pretty interesting!

yamcha and roshi were once again in deep trouble. there it was, yet another android, and this time, there seems to be no way out of the treasure room!

the android in question, android 10, grabbed a huge handful of treasures and threw it at the duo! he then threw wave after wave of precious goods from the pile of treasure, aiming to crush the desert bandit and the turtle hermit underneath it!

"Put me above you, now!" roshi asked yamcha.

" what?" yamcha didn't understood what he meant.

" NOW!" he ordered, which yamcha complied. yamcha grabbed the hermit and put his body above him, the turtle shell on roshi's back facing the roof. when the rain of gold fell down on them, roshi's shell protected both of them from harm! yamcha ran towards the pile while still carrying roshi above him, getting closer and closer as he went towards the hidden dragon ball. however,android 10 saw them coming, and was about to drop down a hammer fist when suddenly...

"THROW ME!!" roshi ordered yamcha.

"YESSIR!!" yamcha responded as he threw roshi with all of his arm strength, which he developed while playing baseball, right at the android's face! roshi then hid his body inside his shell as it hit the android right on the nose! using the ricocheted momentum, roshi spun and cupped his hands together...

"kamehame....HAAAA!!!"

in the ink of an eye, the kamehameha burster out of roshi's palms and hit android 10 directly in the face! it melted the right part of his face, revealing a mechanical skull and an artificial eye, a la terminator.

while roshi was distracting the big artificial life form, yamcha was digging into the pile of treasure, using his dragon radar to find the dragon ball buried inside that pile. he kept on digging and digging, moving over lamps, bracelets, necklaces, jewels and piles of gold before he saw a bright, orange light underneath the rubble.

smiling like a kid, yamcha hurriedly grabbed the two-year dragon ball and admired it like a thief succumbing to the beauty of a diamond. he then came back and to the spot where roshi and android 10 were fighting.

" HEY! I GOT IT!!" yamcha shouted at roshi, showing the dragon ball.

"YOSH!" roshi shouted before facing the android. now all he needed to do is to force the android to fire at a wall...

"Yo! hey junk head!" yamcha called the android. "ya want some of this?" he said, teasingly showing the dragon ball. android 10 then tried punching yamcha, only for the desert bandit to jump away. soon enough,master roshi joined him in the teasing, ruling up the big android with taunts. finally, he had enough, and opened his mouth to fire a laser! roshi and yamcha jumped the together sepaate way, the laser blasting the wall, melting it to create a hole. the android overheated as a result of using his mouth laser, putting it in a state of cool-down.

"Yeah!! we can escape!" yamcha exclaimed.

"first, let's just this freak in the treasure he's guarding!" roshi suggested as he cupped his hands together. "yamcha, ya wanna be my student? then do what I say!"

"y-y-you mean you want me to do the..."

"YES! NOW CUP YOUR HANDS TOGETHER AND CONCENTRATE ALL OF YOUR KI IN A SINGLE POINT!!"

yamcha hurriedly did so. he cupped his hands, then concentrated as hard as he could. suddenly, a flash of light developed in his palms, the energy increasing in size as both yamcha and roshi pronounced the incantation.

"ka...me...ha...me....HAAAAA!!!!"

both roshi and yamcha fired their kamehamehas at the same time, piercing a hole through the android and making it tumble to his death, buried beneath the pile of treasure he was guarding.

yamcha couldn't believe what just happened! he looked at his hands, as if he did the impossible. "a...amazing!"

"indeed!" roshi said. "it appears that you too are a prodigy like goku and krillin. it took me 50 years to develop this technique, yet you boys did it on your first attempts! granted,krillin had experience with ki manipulation when he was at the shaolin temple, but still..."

"so you'll take me under your wings, master?" yamcha asked.

"now now, don't call me master just yet! we need to get outta here first!" roshi exclaimed.

the duo promptly exited the treasure room through the hole and ran downstairs, looking to join the others...unbeknown to them, however, a camera feed caught them running down the 5th floor hallway...and comm. emerald watched the feed!

"how the actual hell..." the ebony-skinned new chairman of the red ribbon couldn't believe it: these pests actually defeated android 10 and found a way out! angered, emerald then pressed a button on the chairman's desk...which in turn transformed the chairman's office into a mech! and comm. emerald is looking like he's going to kick some ass!

MEANWHILE...

the battle rages on in the hangar, as goku, krillin and Frankie were fighting against the powerhouse known as android 13. despite receiving a beating against the super android, the boys still got up and would not give up. their strategy wassimple: Frankie, being the sturdiest and most physically imposing man of the trio, would engage 13 in a wrestling match while goku and krillin, knowing they are no match physically against the mastodon, opted towards hit-and-run tactics, doing sneaky quick attacks to destabilise 13 and allow Frankie to hit him with big blows and rockets up his nose!

even bulma contributed, opting to do support by firing her gun at 13 and Dr. gero, who did the same thing supporting his android.

"TEIYAAAH!" screamed goku and krillin as they kicked 13 in the back of the head, allowing Frankie to fire a rocket punch straight to his face! but the blue mastodon got up and fired a laser that sent the trio flying!

meanwhile, bulma and Dr. gero were stuck in a firefight. even if gero was injured on a shoulder, he still is a gunslinger, even with only one hand! he had bulma hidden behind a piece of the collapsing roof of the hangar. behind it, bulma was regaining her breath.

"it's no use, briefs!" dr. gero shouted. "its tume for you and your cronies to surrender and admit my superiority!"

"won't you just....DIE ALREADY?!" bulma shouted, getting out of cover and firing at gero...

however, there was a small problem...

she was out of ammo!

bulma stood there, surprised, uselessly trying to fire her empty gun while gero was laughing, aiming his revolver at the petrified purple-haired scientist.

"hahaha, I can't wait to see briefs's face when he sees the dead body of his own daughter!" gero arrogantly exclaimed "YOU'RE FINISH-"

suddenly, a huge turtle shell whacked Dr. gero in the face, knocking him out and dropping his gun! it then ricocheted right into 13's face, stunning him, allowing Frankie, krillin and goku to deliver a thunderous triple strike that sent the super android flying for the first time!

bulma, surprised by the sudden arrival of the flying shell, followed it with her eyes until a short, old man grabbed it like a boomerang and put it on his back. that's where she and the gang saw that it was actually master roshi and yamcha, doing peace signs!

" Yamcha! master roshi!" everybody except Frankie exclaimed. Frankie just smiled upon recognising friendly faces.

"kept ya waiting, uh?" yamcha asked the gang as they hugged each other and gave bulma a kiss. "Who are those guys?" he asked, pointing at the unconscious gero and 13.

"the old guy is Dr. gero,and the blue giant is android 13." krillin answered.

"so that's the bastard who wanted to turn goku into a cyborg?" yamcha said with anger. he then saw goku, who looked like he took a huge beating. "hey, you ok, kid?"

"heh heh, never been better!" goku painfully boasted, only to fall down on his knees due to how badly hurt he was. "t...that 13 guy is way stronger than I thought!"

"calm down, goku." bulma said, carrying the injured monkey boy in her arms. "oh got the dragon ball?" she asked yamcha.

"yup! right here!" her boyfriend answered, showing the 2-star dragon ball in his hands.

"let's get outta here, shall we?" master roshi asked, to which everybody nodded in approval.

"how do we get outta here, though?" krillin asked, looking around the damaged hangar. "we don't have a getaway vehicle."

"i have kinto'un outside..." roshi said. "...however, not everybody can get on board, and it can only carry two persons..."

Frankie then scanned the hangar in hope of finding a getaway vehicle...suddenly,he found something.

" there, at the end of the hangar, a 7-seat hovercar parked near the hangar door."

"awesome!" yamcha exclaimed. "let's go, guys!" he said as the gang went towards the hovercraft...when suddenly, a huge mech fell down the roof and landed in front of them! it was an egg-shaped mech piloted by none other than commander emerald!

"you again?" roshi said.

" yeah, me again!" commander emerald answered sarcastically. "and this time, your asses ain't going nowhere!" as he said that, he charged his arm cannon, aiming at the gang.

Dr. Gero then got up, grabbed his gun and pointed at the gang, smiling sinisterly.

"yes, commander black! lets get rid of those pests!" he exclaimed in sadistic happiness.

"it's commander emerald now, gero!" emerald corrected.

"you're making a big mistake, commander!" bulma said to emerald. "gero will betray you!"

everyone except krillin and bulma were stunned by these accusations. 

"...do you have proof?" commander emerald asked.

"What kind of silly question is that, commander?" gero said with subtle confidence. "you trust me the most out of anybody in this army! of course, she has no way to back it up!"

"heh..." bulma smiled a trickster's smile as she grabbed a book from her pockets. gero, upon feasting his eyes on the book, immediately went pale as a ghost upon realising it was his personal diary!

"WH-WHAT THE HELL?? WHERE DID YOU GET THAT?!"

"my father's notes aren't the only thing I took from your lab, doctor!" bulma cockily said, intriguing everybody while infuriating gero, as if the old scientist begged not to read what's in it. bulma then opened the book and began reading, taking a snobbish tone in her voice.

" I look at these supposed "freedom fighters", and all I see is nothing but a bunch of terrorists manipulated like sheeps in order to follow the ideals of a power-hungry old man. once I've found the secret to cybernetics, we'll start our coup d'etat. my androids will easily crush any and all resistance. these red ribbon fools severely lacks firepower. it's a miracle that they made the world afraid of them! my androids and I will expose them and their pathetic midget leader as the gutless cowards they are, them well capture them and turn them all into cyborgs. with me in command, and with the greatest army ever built by my side, I can finally protect the world my way..."

"grr, SHUT UUUPPP!!" gero screamed, about to shoot bulma, when suddenly, a paralyzing ray hit him, freezing him in place as the mech piloted by comm. emerald approached bulma.

"...let me see what's written." emerald demanded.

" of course, sir!" bulma said, happy giving it to the commander.

emerald then carefully checked the handwriting inside the diary...

"...no doubt about it, it is gero's handwriting!" he exclaimed, prompting a stunned reaction from everyone except bulma, who was grinning from ear to ear.

gero was dumbstruck. 

he was outsmarted...

by a briefs...

in the space of an entire day, he was about to lose everything...

his work...

his lab...

his dream...

" you disappoint me greatly, gero!" commander emerald told the scientist. " I thought pur partnership would be of mutual benefits to each other...but the truth is...we never really trusted you."

gero wanted to bow his head down in shame, but couldn't due to being paralysed.

"and now that our doubts have been confirmed, we cannot let you continue any longer!" emerald said, pointing his mech's arm cannon at the scientist. "gero di talia, in the name of the red ribbon, we sentence you to death for high treason, and we will repossess your lab and your androids!"

the arm cannon was charging up, ready to turn the paralysed mad scientist into cinder.

"any last words, doctor?" emerald asked.

gero closed his eyes, looking beaten...when suddenly, a smirk appeared on his face.

"...activate Armageddon protocol..."

suddenly...

 

BOOM!!!

the entire muscle tower started shaming as if an earthquake was happening.

"w-what the hell?" everybody said as they started to stumble due to the rubbles.

"G-gero! what have you done?!" commander emerald asked the scientist, who was smiling.

"heh, heh...while you had your attention elsewhere, me and my androids have planted C4 all over the underground structure!" gero explained. "now that the bombs have exploded, this base will crumble in a matter of minutes!"

"WHAT??" everybody shouted. "y-you're insane!" bulma shouted.

" and a coward!" master roshi added.

"hahaha...your petty insults don't bother me the slightest!" gero boasted. "i'd rather die than have my dream taken away from me!" he said as the ground began cracking!

"Y-you bastard!" emerald said before he began falling down as the ground cracked beneath him! as the mech was falling, emerald pressed a button as the egg-shaped cockpit blasted off through the roof, turning itself into an escape pod. the gang quickly ran away towards the hovercar parked at the hangar door.

"once I'm free from this mortal coil, I will come back stronger than ever!" gero said as the ground behind him began to crumble. " you miserable creatures of flesh and bones are only delaying the inevitable! soon, cybernetics will rule the world and protect it from total destruction!"

the ground beneath the scientist then opened up, creating a big endless pit as the doctor fell down into oblivion.

 

"I'LL SEE YOU ALL IN HELL!!" he shouted as he fell to his death, his body disappearing in the empty void of the endless crater.

Meanwhile, the gang arrived a the parked hovercar and jumped right into it. yamcha, who was in the driver's seat, pressed the start-up butoon, only to see that the navigation computer had an access code!

"shit! now's not the time!" yamcha exclaimed.

"hold on, let me hack into it." Frankie said as he plugged his fingers into the computer. after 4 seconds, they gained access to the navigation computer, allowing yamcha to start the engines and away they went, exiting the muscle tower through the hangar door.

...But surprise! the car stopped moving and leaned backwards! the gang looked behind them and shrieked in terror as android 13 was trying to pull the car back into the hangar! the super android was damaged, but not out, and he will stop at nothing to destroy his enemies!

" What will it takes to beat this guy?" goku asked, wondering what to do as the ground was beginning to crumble near them!

that's where Frankie placed his clothes on goku's shoulders.

"huh? Frankie, what are you do-"

"put these clothes on, son goku!" said a half-naked frankie. "its cold out there, you better cover yourself."

"f-frankie, what's going on?" t monkey boy asked when Frankie began approaching the raging super android 13.

"...thank you, son goku..." Frankie told the monkey boy. "...you we're the only friend I ever had...ypu gave me something that I never had before...hope!"

"Frankie..."

"I want you and your loved ones to live. hope you'll never forget about me."

"frankie, no!"

"...goodbye, my friend!"

and with these words, Frankie jumped on android 13,delivering a flying crossbody press that ripped off 13's arms as both artificial lifeforms plunged to their deaths in the endless abyss under the horrified stare of goku.

 

"NOOOO! FRANKIIIIE!!" screamed a crying goku as bulma grabbed him by his hair to bring him back into the stabilised car.

"HANG ON, EVERYONE! FULL SPEED, ACTIVATED!!" yamcha shouted as he pressed on the gas and the hovercar blasted off at 200 MPH, avoiding falling debris along the way as they left muscle tower crumble into dust as they drove away into the snowy roads of bingshan province, watching as the muscle tower and the red ribbon army fade away from existence.

while everybody were relieved, goku only became sadder. not only did he lost his grandpa's nyoibo, but he also lost a friend in Frankie. sure, they haven't been together for long, but goku always grows attached to his friends, which makes his sacrifice even more painful for the monkey boy.

bulma and krillin, upon seeing goku cry, had pity for him and went to hug him at the same time to comfort him.

"it's okay, goku...its okay." bulma whispered in goku's ears.

"Frankie...why?" goku asked, his tears having been dried.

"it's thanks to him that we are still alive." krillin soberly said. "don't worry, buddy, his sacrifice wasn't in vain!"

goku stopped crying and gave a reassured smile to his bald best friend. krillin and bulma were happy that goku stopped crying, at least.

"...its cold..." the monkey boy said, feeling the cold winds of bingshan despite being covered in frankie's clothes.

"take a nap, goku..." bulma suggested to him. "...its all over now, you should rest."

"...thanks, guys." goku said before falling asleep of fatigue.

" hey, yamcha." bulma called his boyfriend. "hope there's somewhere near where we can stop. we're all tired."

"you're in luck, babe!" yamcha answered. "there's a small settlement near our current position." he said, looking at the GPS inside the navigation computer of the hovercar. "its called jingu village or something."

"i've been there before." roshi said, picking the curiosity of the desert bandit and the purple-haired scientist. "really nice place, the people there are very welcoming! it's actually a pretty popular touristic attraction in bingshan. have a pretty cosy hotel run by a small family. rooms are very comfortable and the prices are very affordable."

"sounds like that's where we gonna stop for the day!" yamcha said, setting the GPS so that their next destination is the jingu village. the hovercar continued on its road, then took a right turn as they headed towards the small set of houses surrounding an hotel in the distance.

after a thrilling journey like that, a bit of rest is exactly what they needed...

 

END OF THE RED RIBBON ARC.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FINALLY! I've finished this damn arc!
> 
> man, you couldn't believe how frustrating it was writing this! doesn't help that I don't like writing all that much!
> 
> not only that, but some external factors and lack of motivation also contributed to me not taking pleasure in writing recently.
> 
> knowing that, I've decided to take a break from this fic.
> 
> when I'll be back? maybe in two or three weeks, as next week is where I'm on vacation, and I want to fully enjoy it!
> 
> and when I'll return to writing this fic, I think I'll write something light and relaxing, focusing on goku and the gang relaxing at jingu village and meeting suno and her dad, just so I work off the rust.
> 
> with all of that said, I sincerely thank everyone who is still reading and bookmarking this fic. I really appreciate your support, it really feels good to know people appreciate the efforts i put in this! and to those who are new or haven't caught up yet, now might be the perfect time!
> 
> thank you for reading! see ya in the near future!


	24. the village hidden in the snow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> goku and his friends finay escaped the deadly claws of muscle tower,putting an end to the red ribbon's tyrannical rule. now, they are heading to a nearby settlement named jingu village for rest and relaxation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Following is not for profit. it is strictly a fan work meant for personal amusement. Dragon ball, dragon ball z and dragon ball super is property of Akira toriyama, toyotaro, shueisha, Toei animation and shonen jump. please support the official release.
> 
> Some ideas from this fanfic are taken from Lawrence Simpson, AKA: Masakox of teamfourstar fame. check out his what-ifs, they're pretty interesting!

the mountainous region of bingshan is located in the far north east on the world map. the far north is home to a very cold climate. the winters there are particularly strong, with many record low temperatures being recorded in and around its coldest parts. summer,if one can call it summer, has a livable climate, yet still cold enough so that wearing a small coat is mandatory. it is rare to see it's inhabitants go out without a coat. only for the month of june and July that the temperature is remotely hot.

but then again, bingshan is not known for its brown, dead summer grass.

it is known for having quite possibly the most breathtakingly beautiful winter in all of the world. leafless trees wave in the direction of the whispering winds as snow of the purest white covers bingshan's lands like a blanket carefully covering a queen-sized bed. rabbits bounced and ran , covering the snow with their footprints, while an owl was signing its song, perched on an old, worn branch.

near the sumptuous mountains covered in snow and ice was a village of average size, spreading itself on several tiles near the bingshan highway. the houses, made of wood from the dead forests nearby, didn't have anything that stands out from other houses. in fact, this entire village would be nothing special if it wasn't for its main attraction:

deep in the center of the village, near the town hall and the commercial district was a large hotel that was taller than almost every house in the village. the hotel, called "jingu inn", is owned and operated by a small family who was known for being so welcoming to tourists that they transformed their house into the hotel that now stands tall in the middle of downtown.

in a small room inside the hotel, a little girl with hair red like a poppy was staring at the beautiful natural landscape in the distance. she had big, bright brown eyes full of innocence and love, and her face was round like a balloon. she had just finished her work shift in the hotel. that's right, the entire family helps with the day-to-day running of the hotel, even the children. the little redheaded girl, whose name was suno, happily volunteers to help her parents. having the kids do tasks at the hotel helps them becoming hardworking, responsible persons according to suno's parents. it definitely helped her become just that. but even then, suno cherished her free time, like most kids her age. and she loves how beautiful nature is, standing in front of her window admiring the graceful snow outside.

suddenly, something In the distance caught suno's curiosity: a military hovercar was coming towards the hotel, carrying 5 people in it: a young man in a military uniform, a teenager girl wearing the same thing as the young man, an old man with a turtle shell on his back, a bald child and a wild-haired boy, the two boys roughly the same age as her.

suno immediately jumped out of her bed and ran down the stairs heading into the main hall. at the right of the main hall stood the family's living room, which, during business time, serves as the waiting room for the guests. there, a young, chubby woman was cleaning the entire room, sweeping the floor with a broom. she was wearing a large, green dress with the collar attached by buttons, and she had the same brown eyes as suno...which is pretty normal, since it's actually the red-haired girl's mother! however, she had black hair, unlike her daughter.

suno's red hair comes from his father, a doctor, who owns the hotel along with his wife. he had an impressive build, no doubt due to his bygone days as a lumberjack. he had a thick beard that is as wild as his spiky red hair, and his black eyes had the look of a wise, devoted father.

suno's parents, however, weren't happy that their daughter was running carelessly down the stairs like that.

"Suno, honey, don't run up and down the stairs, you'll hurt yourself!" her mother said.

"Mom! dad! we're gonna have company!" suno exclaimed, coloring her parents intrigued. it was at this moment that they heard a knock at the door...

it was yamcha who knocked on the door, and he was in no mood to wait. he had every right to, cause he and the rest of the gang were freezing like popsicles out there! despite wearing coats, he, bulma and krillin were still feeling the harsh coldness of bingshan, with goku, despite being covered in the clothing of the late android 8, was suffering the most, no doubt accentuated by the injuries he suffered through battle.

"come on, we're freezing to death!" yamcha said, growing more and more impatient as he continued knocking on the door.

"babe, stop knocking, they'll come!" bulma reprimanded him.

"it's an hotel, of course they'll answer!" krillin added.

"sure taking a long ass time to answer!" yamcha said in annoyance. "...and where the hell is roshi?"

"i'm still here!" roshi exclaimed, but the gang didn't find him anywhere. "...look at my shell!" the old man said, prompting the gang to look at the turtle shell on the ground.

"wait what?" everybody except the resting goku shouted as they saw that roshi's voice was coming from the shell. "How the hell did you enter your shell?" krillin asked, stupefied.

"too cold!" the turtle hermit answered.

then, the door opened, and the gang laid eyes on suno and her family, who greeted them with smiles all over their faces.

"Welcome to jingu inn!" all three family members said in unison. however, their expressions suddenly turned into worry as they saw the red ribbon emblem on yamcha, bulma and krillin's stolen uniform.

"huh? what's wrong?" yamcha asked, not aware of the situation.

"y-y-you're from the red ribbon?" suno's father asked, scared.

" NO! no no no, we're not!" bulma assured the family.

"but why are you wearing their uniforms?" suno asked.

"it's a long story..." bulma answered."...excuse me, we really need a room! we're freezing to death, and our friend here is badly hurt and need some rest!" she said, shiwing the sleeping goku in her arms.

upon seeing how hurt the boy was, the family were horrified. the wild haired boy had cuts and bruises everywhere on his face and arms, had his left eye swole and he looked tired as all hell.

" oh my word! what happened to him?" suno asked.

"suno, prepare rooms for our guests!" her mom told her.

"right!" suno exclaimed, going right at it.

"i'll take care of the kid, I'm a doctor." suno's dad said, grabbing the injured goku. "come on in, it's cold out there!" he told the rest of the gang.

inside the hotel, the gang all crashed into the living room, so relieved to finally lay down and breath, fully embracing the warm, comforting heat inside the building.

"hey! sit properly, you rudelings!" suno's mother ordered the gang.

"we've been waiting forever to get some rest, give us a damn break!" roshi said.

"i hope I have a queen sized bed...nay, make it kingdom sized!" yamcha said.

"i spent the whole evening cleaning the living room!" suno's mom exclaimed "now, if you don't sit properly, we will kick y-"

"the rooms are ready, mom!" suno exclaimed.

"YES!!" the gang shouted in unison as they followed the little red-haired girl, who promptly showed them their rooms. each room were impeccably assembled, the large beds covered in thick white blankets fresh out of the laundry machine, shiny wooden desks surrounding the room, with a top-notch TV standing on the main desk. under the TV, the drawers had enough space to put two bags full of clothes. near the balconies were comfy-looking chairs.

bulma and yamcha had their own room for themselves, while goku, krillin and roshi shared the other room in front of them. however, everybody were in goku's room, as the beatened and bruised monkey boy was laying on the bed completely exhausted, suno's father taking care of him, checking his injuries.

"ooh boy..." the former lumberjack-turned-doctor sighed as he checked goku's body. "...whatever happened to him, it was not pretty! he need rest...a lot of rest...and potentially some stitching work to do, too."

goku then moaned in pain.

"calm down, goku, you're safe here." bulma said to the monkey boy. goku, krillin, the late android 8 and herself fought bravely against the terrifying super android 13 and its creator, Dr. gero. while they got out of here alive, the battle left some scars, and goku's tiny little body was full of them.

" goku...thats a nice name!" suno said as she put ice on goku's swollen eye. "...in fact, where do you guys come from?" the red-haired girl asked the gang.

"and why are you wearing red ribbon uniforms?" suno's dad asked.

"we're from west city." bulma answered. "...and we actually went to save him." bulma explained, pointing at the monkey boy.

"he was captured by them?" suno asked.

"yeah...we disguised ourselves to infiltrate." yamcha precised.

"...you're secret agents or something?" suno asked.

"nah, we are goku's friends." bulma answered. "you won't believe it, but goku is really strong. so strong, in fact, that the red ribbon wanted to use him as a living weapon!"

"oh my!" suno's mom exclaimed. "poor kid...these red ribbon guys are scums of the earth! all of them!"

"don't worry, ma'am, they are no more!" roshi assured.

"uh? what do you mean?" suno asked the old man.

"i heard a building crumble in the distance while I was out cutting trees." suno's dad said. "and there is only one building near our area...which means..."

"yea, we escaped and the muscle tower crumbled into oblivion." yamcha confirmed. "those red ribbon freaks are no more."

"good riddance!" suno's mom exclaimed, to the approval of everyone. "the winter is already troublesome for the village. the red ribbon only made it worse!"

"they've been here before?" krillin asked.

" yeah, a bunch of scary men with guns who thought they owned the village." suno mournfully said.

roshi, bulma and yamcha looked at the little red-haired girl when she talked about the red ribbon. she looked as if she was terrified of them. suno's mom quickly caught the adults looking at her daughter,and went towards them.

"...suno saw innocents being killed by them." the chubby housewife explained quietly to roshi, bulma and yamcha. "she may look cheerful to our guests, but deep down, it traumatised her greatly."

"...poor girl..." both roshi and bulma whispered. no child should ever witness the horrors that mankind can do. 

the rest of the night went by quietly, the gang sleeping in their respective rooms, while suno and her dad did their best to heal goku.

 

the next day, during the afternoon, goku slowly opened his eyes with a groan. he looked around the hotel room he was in, wondering how he got here. that's where he began remembering yesterday, where he and his friends escaped the muscle tower and went to a village not far from here, where they entered a house that his friends called "hotel".

he turned his head to the right, only to come face to face with a smiling suno, who looked at him with admiration.

"huh? who...who are you?" the sleepy monkey boy asked the red haired girl.

"i'm suno! nice to meet you, son goku!" she answered.

"h-how do you know my name? where am I?" goku asked, confused.

"your friends told us your name." suno explained. "and you're in our hotel, jingu inn!"

"what's an hotel?" goku asked. all he sees is a room with two beds, a chair, desks and a tv.

"oh, don't be silly!" suno exclaimed. "surely you know what an hotel is?"

"no, I'm serious, what's an hotel?" goku insisted, to the surprise of the red haired girl in front of him.

"hohoho, that's our goku, alright!" master roshi suddenly entered goku's room while laughing. " did you sleep well?" he asked the monkey boy.

"m-master roshi!" goku said smiling, before groaning in pain, not knowing why his face was hurting.

"don't smile too much!" suno told him. "dad and I put stitches on your face!"

"s...stitches?" goku asked.

"you were badly hurt during the fight against android 13." roshi explained. "we brought you here, and thank goodness, that little girl's father turned out to be a doctor! he closed the cuts on your face with stitches. and suno, I can say that you and your dad did a pretty good job!"

"thank you, sir!" suno said. "daddy taught me a lot of his knowledge of medicine. I'm glad I was able to help goku recover!"

"t-thanks" goku said, still flinching in pain.

" now, we're gonna slowly get you up on your feet..."suno and roshi grabbed goku's arms and helped him stand up. at first, goku's legs were all wobbly, his knees trembling like a milkshake. after a few seconds, they regained their mobility, and goku walked around his hotel room.

"woah...why are my legs shaking like that?"the monkey boy asked.

"you've been out cold for a while!" roshi answered. "you were snoring so loud, not even a truck is loud enough to cover it!"

" really? how long was I out?" goku asked.

"well, it's 3pm, right now, and you've arrived here yesterday at 9pm..." suno calculated. "...which means you slept for 18 straight hours!"

"18 hours?!" goku couldn't believe what he just heard! he knew he was a hard sleeper, but for that long?

"it's no surprise that your legs are all wobbly!" roshi said while giggling. "alright, come to the lobby, goku. our friends are waiting for you!"

with that said, the monkey boy moved towards the door, albeit with help from both roshi and suno. the three made their way to the lobby, where bulma, yamcha and krillin were watching the movie back to the future. they finally got rid of their red ribbon uniforms and put on some casual clothing. yamcha was wearing a white t-shirt with jeans, krillin was wearing a green cotton hoodie with matching baggy pants and, finally, bulma wore the same things as her boyfriend.

"come on, are you serious?" yamcha asked her purple-haired girlfriend, looking surprised. "this is science fiction!"

"well, to be fair, hovercars, androids and popping things out of capsules do sound like science fiction, too!" krillin said.

" and guess what? they exist!" bulma exclaimed. " with science, nothing is impossible!"

" yeah, but time travel?" yamcha asked. "don't you think it's too much of a stretch?"

"we will find a way, babe! I'm sure of it!" bulma positively exclaimed.

"hey guys!" goku shouted as he waved at his friends, who were rejoiced to find him up and running.

"goku!" everybody shouted as they went towards the monkey boy.

"what were you talking about?" the monkey boy asked.

"bulma was talking about making a time machine." krillin explained.

"what's that?" goku asked.

" it allows you to travel back in time!" bulma explained. "for example, with the machine, roshi can go back to his youthful days and meet his younger self!"

"woah!" goku was amazed.

"ooh boy, I don't wanna meet my younger self..." roshi whispered.

" but of course, it's science fiction!" yamcha said. " there's no way we'd be able to go through time!"

"why not?" goku asked.

" you clearly don't understand what "science fiction" means, don't you..." yamcha whispered.

"while it's true that we're nowhere near the technological level to build one, it won't stop me from trying!" bulma said, looking confident. "but enough talk about it, how are you, goku?" the purple-haired scientist asked the monkey boy.

" I feel dizzy, to be honest." goku answered.

"no wonder: you've been sleeping almost the entire day!" yamcha said. "and I can see that that suno girl and her dad patched you up." he said, pointing at the stitches on goku's cheeks.

"yeah, why did they put these weird things on my fa-OW!" goku shouted in pain as he tried taking off the stitches.

"NO, GOKU, STOP!!" everybody shouted as they stopped goku from doing a huge mistake. "this is meant to heal your scars! don't take them off!" bulma explained.

"heal me?" the monkey boy was curious. "but it's so annoying! it makes me want to scratch my face!"

" it may be annoying, but it will close your wounds with time. " suno's dad, arriving from the kitchen, told the monkey boy. "you just have to be patient, that's all."

" alright, if you say so..." goku said, still annoyed by his stitches. he then checked himself in the mirror.

" at least, you can disguise yourself as frankenstein for Halloween!" krillin joked...only to see goku looking sad. maybe talking about frankenstein made him remember his late friend android 8, AKA: frankie. "...sorry, bud." krillin said to his best friend, regretting what he said.

bulma, meanwhile, turned to face the family that gave the gang shelter for the night. "thank you so much for everything you've done!" she told them, bowing down. "we'll always be grateful!"

"now now, we're just doing our jobs as innkeepers, that's all!" suno's dad said humbly.

"your rooms are really comfy! it ain't some cheap hotel, that's for sure!" krillin said.

" thank you!" suno's mom said to the bald monk. "if you want, we can give you a tour of the village!" she proposed. "we have many things to do here, in jingu, including the ice caves, the museum, bingshan bakery and our world famous hot springs!"

"hot springs? in a land full of snow?" yamcha asked, curious about that last activity.

"oh yes! there is a huge source at congel mountain!" suno said, pointing at the tall mountains surrounding the village. "its our most popular tourist attraction, and you'll see, it's very warm!"

"hmm, yeah, It'd be cool if we go there to relax." bulma said, yawning and stretching.

"sounds good!" goku said.

"Oh yes, I definitely needs some hot springs!" roshi said, grinning like a mad man.

"don't get your hopes up, you perv!" bulma warned the hermit. "if the hot springs are in the mountain, that means it's a mixed bath."

"yup!" suno happily confirmed.

"aw, shucks..." roshi whispered, bowing his head down in disappointment.

"so, where are those springs?" goku asked the red-haired little girl.

" Oh, we'll gladly guide you there!" suno exclaimed.

after grabbing their coats and stopping at the supermarket to buy some bathing suits, the gang followed suno to congel mountain. despite some icy parts, the road to the hot springs was pretty uneventful. goku spend the journey looking at the various animals nearby, while the gang were talking with their red haired guide.

"is it ok for you to be alone like this?" bulma asked, wondering why did her parents let suno go to the mountain alone.

"i visit the mountains with mom and dad a lot, so i know its every corner!" suno answered. "besides, I'm not completely alone, I'm with you guys!"

" yeah, right..." yamcha whispered. he and bulma went ro the same conclusion: whatever happens to the girl, they will be responsible! so they better make sure that nothing happens! "...you've been to these hot springs before?" he asked suno

"yup!" the red-haired girl responded. " it allows us to keep our bodies warm during the winter."

"...which, in bingshan, is pretty much all year long!" krillin said, making everybody chuckle...

 

"here we are!"

with these words, suno presented the wonderful congel mountain hot springs. the gang were mesmerized at the sheer beauty in front of them. multiple pools of various size were filled with warm, steamy spring water coming from a seemingly endless current flowing at a brisk pace, the white steam coming out of the pools filling the air surrounding them.

" woah..."goku said, speechless. "...how come the water in the pools don't turn into ice? its all snowy and cold here." the monkey boy asked bulma.

"its because the water comes from the ground, and it's geothermally heated." bulma explained. " this means that the heat is produced from the earth's mantle."

"mantle?" goku asked.

"it's a collection of hot rocks." the purple-haired scientist answered. " if the water percolate deeply enough into the crust, it will be heated as it comes into contact with the rocks."

goku responded by nodding, even though he didn't fully understood what bulma said.

"well, what are we waiting for?" roshi asked, taking off his coat and leaving only his swim trunks on.

" alright, let's go!" goku shouted as he jumped into the hot springs...only to come out waving his arms frantically! "HOT! HOT! HOT! HOT!"

"goku! don't divebomb into the springs!" krillin exclaimed, putting himself in only his swimming trunks.

" man, he can be as naive as he can be smart at times." bulma whispered as she took off her jeans and t-shirt, revealing a blue one piece swimsuit. normally, she wears bikinis, but, knowing that there are kids (and that pervert roshi) around her, she went for something more modest.

yamcha and roshi, while disappointed in bulma's choice of swimwear (yamcha obviously more discreetly than the turtle hermit), eventually made their way into the pool, and the gang relaxed in unison.

"ah yeah, that feels so good!" yamcha sighed.

" I'm in heaven!" said a chilling bulma.

" me too, heh heh!" said roshi, who was sitting besides bulma...who promptly elbowed him in the face.

"and to think such a comforting place is up in the mountains!" krillin said.

"well, the house me and my grandpa lived on mt. paozu is pretty comfy!" goku said.

" why would a shack in the middle of a mountain be a nice place to live?" krillin asked the monkey boy.

" why would wandering the world, living like a homeless person while looking for a hermit be a nice way to live?" bulma rhetorically asked the bald monk.

"...touche."

 

"hey, I've been wondering something..." roshi said. "...where's nyoibo, goku?" he asked the monkey boy, who then looked sad as he remembered what happened.

"that android 13 guy broke it in half." goku answered.

" really? he did?" roshi was surprised.

" yeah! effortlessly, at that!" krillin confirmed.

"well, considering he was an android, his strength was double that of an ordinary human being." bulma analysed.

" no way, it would take more than double the strength of a human being to break it." roshi corrected the purple-haired scientist. "that staff was made of materials harder than any material known on earth! these can only be found in one place...and I know where!"

" really? I can rebuild nyoibo?" goku looked at roshi with focus.

"yes." roshi confirmed.

"where?" yamcha asked.

"at korin's tower. " roshi answered.

"who's korin?" bulma asked.

" wait, you mean korin, the god of martial arts?" yamcha asked, surprised and excited.

" yes, the one and only!" roshi confirmed, to yamcha's stupefaction.

" you know him, yamcha?" goku asked the former desert bandit.

"everybody in the martial arts world knows korin!" yamcha exclaimed. " he's quite possibly the best trainer ever!"

"ahem, I'm not that far behind, thank you very much!" roshi said, irritated.

" no offense, hermit, but korin is just on another level!" yamcha said. "he trained so many legendary martial artists, including you, hermit!"

" woah, really?" both goku and krillin were stupefied at that statement.

"there was a time when I was under korin's wing, true." roshi confirmed, before laughing. "if you thought that my old master, mutaito, was hard on me, then you wouldn't believe how awfully tough korin's training was! that damn holy water test took me three years to succeed!"

"three years??" everybody shouted.

"oh yes, three whole years of chasing after that damn flask!" roshi said, shivering at the thought of doing that test again. "anyways, If you want to create a new nyoibo, goku, then you must go to korin's tower."

"he lives in a tower?" suno asked.

" yeah!" yamcha answered. "legend says that it's taller than even mount Everest! and those who trained under him had to climb the entire tower straight into the sky!"

"climb the tower? that seems like a huge task!" bulma said.

"oh it is, believe me!" roshi said, confirming that he did climb the tower.

"yeah, but bulma has those flying thingies iinside her capsules." goku said.

"you mean the chopper?" bulma asked.

"hohoho! good luck trying to reach the top of the tower by chopper!" master roshi laughed.

"why?" goku asked.

" the tower is 25,000 feet tall!" the hermit exclaimed. "it took me three days just to climb that tower!"

"t-three days?" krillin and yamcha said, gulping.

" it can be done by chopper." bulma said, stupefying everyone. "the highest an helicopter has ever gotten is exactly 25,000 feet."

" ah, ok! we can take the chopper, then!" goku said.

"however, the catch is that...it was possible cause the chopper used is an experimental prototype devoid of any extra weight and useless parts." bulma precised. "so the way I see it is that, once we reach the highest possible distance my chopper is able to go, goku continues his journey by climbing whatever distance is left to climb."

"...why can't I just use kinto'un?" goku asked.

"...thats a great idea, goku!" bulma said, sighing in relief, as she already had enough trouble as it is, and she definitely didn't want to risk her life by potentially dying in an helicopter crash!

"hmm, perhaps you can cover the first few feets by chopper, then goku jumps on kinto'un to reach the top of the tower." yamcha suggested.

"good plan, yamcha!" goku exclaimed, much to bulma's chagrin. "i can't wait to rebuild my grandpa's staff!" he said, getting up from the hot spring...only to go back down immediately due to how cold it was!

"actually, nyoibo belonged to me." roshi corrected. "I gave it to son gohan when he finished his training as a parting gift."

goku then looked at the snowy landscape down the mountain. even though his adventures at the muscle tower were over, it seems he always had new things to do. first, rebuild grandpa gohan's nyoibo, then find the 4-star dragon ball. he then turned around to face master roshi.

"where is korin's tower?" the monkey boy asked the turtle hermit with complete seriousness.

everybody were surprised at how serious goku looked. it's as if he absolutely wanted to repair his grandpa's staff. yamcha and krillin were confused, but bulma and roshi knew what that staff means to the monkey boy.

"in the far east, near zhouguan, in the crane empire." roshi answered.

"the crane empire?" bulma asked. "that country is isolated. they dont like foreigners!"

" no, in the news, they said that the new emperor is opening the borders this year." krillin said.

" really? that's huge, considering they have a big market!" yamcha said.

" yeah, and guess what?" krillin told everyone. "...they are going to organise the next tenkaichi budokai!"

" woah! really?" roshi asked, surprised.

" yeah! to celebrate the opening of its borders, the organisation that runs the budokai accepted that the crane empire hosts the next tournament two years from now!" krillin confirmed.

"wow, that's big news!" yamcha said.

" hey, maybe I can ask this korin guy to not only build a new nyoibo, but train me as well!" goku reasoned.

" yeah, that'd be great!" bulma said.

" hey, can I come with you?" krillin asked his best friend. " I'd love to train with him so i can be prepared once the tournament arrives. no offense, master!" he said, bowing down to the turtle hermit.

"hohoho, it's alright, krillin!" roshi assured the bald monk. "I can tell ya that korin made me a much stronger fighter! it's important to learn under different masters, so as to broaden your skillset and know what these masters preach! who knows, maybe you'll see life in a different point of view!"

intrigued by what master roshi said, both goku and krillin agreed that it would be better if they made the journey to korin's tower together. both feel that they can become stronger by training with this mysterious martial arts master. goku then suddenly turned towards yamcha.

" what about you, yamcha?" the monkey boy asked the former desert bandit. "ya wanna go with us?"

"nah, I'll pass." yamcha answered. "besides, i'm gonna train with master roshi!"

"huh?" goku and krillin were confused at that statement.

"when we teamed up at muscle tower..." roshi began talking. "...i realised just how good yamcha has become. hell, he even managed to do the kamehameha!"

" really?" goku, bulma and krillin were surprised.

" yeah, I did! it was awesome!" yamcha exclaimed. "i felt the ki flow into my hands and everything!"

" and, upon seeing his potential, I've decided to take him under my wing, just like you guys!" roshi said.

"woah, that's great, yamcha!" goku told the former desert bandit. goku and krillin were telling him how lucky he was...but goku noticed something strange. bulma didn't react to the good news...she only smiled...

"...are you alright, bulma?" goku asked 

"huh? of course, i'm alright, why?" the purple-haired scientist asked.

"i dunno, I find it weird that you didn't react to yamcha's news." goku told her.

" oh, it of course, i'm happy for him! I can't wait to see how strong he'll be at the next budokai!" she exclaimed.

" yeah, me too!" goku said, before facing bulma. "ya gonna train with him?" he asked his purple-haired friend.

"no! no no no no!" bulma answered.

"uh? why? you were awesome at the last tournament!" goku said.

" yeah, I know, I did a lot better than I thought..." bulma said. "...but this was the last time I'll ever fight!"

"aw c'mon, bulma!" the monkey boy was disappointed.

" goku, I already told you, i'm not a fighter!" the purple-haired scientist said. "my true calling is in the lab!"

"alright then, what are we waiting for?" master roshi asked, leaving the hot springs. "let's go, yamcha!"

"huh? w-where are you going?" yamcha asked.

"you wanna start training or not?" roshi asked the desert bandit.

"w-wait what? you mean right now?" yamcha was caught off guard.

"uh, yeah, right now!" the hermit confirmed. "time waits for no one, yknow?"

"b-b-but it's cold out there!" yamcha said.

"exactly!" roshi exclaimed. "nothing better to harden your body than training under cold temperature!"

" WHAT??" yamcha felt like he was gonna die.

"are you serious?" bulma asked.

"welp, shall we get going, goku?" krillin asked the monkey boy.

"yup! let's go to korin's tower!" he answered, leaving the hot springs...freezing like popsicles!

 

A while later, the gang came back to their hotel rooms to change. Bulma changed into her casual clothing, while yamcha changed into a turtle school gi given to him by the turtle hermit, while goku and krillin changed back into their usual outfits. The gan then went outside, where roshi and yamcha prepared themselves for their training.

“well, looks like we won’t see each other for two years.” Goku said.

“ yeah.” Bulma said. “…so, once two years have passed, shall we all meet at the budokai?”

“yup!” goku exclaimed. “I can’t wait to see how strong yamcha will become!”

“and I can’t wait to see how strong you guys will be under korin!” yamcha told goku and krillin. 

“alright, I got everything ready.” Krillin said, carrying a bag containing spare clothes, food and drinks. “…you gonna call that cloud of yours, goku?”

“yosh! KINTO'UN!!!”

The supersonic cloud soon arrived in front of goku and krillin, the two boys jumping on it and ready to go. “I'm gonna miss you, guys!” goku told bulma, yamcha and roshi.

“we'll miss you too!” bulma exclaimed. “good luck to both of ya! See you at the budokai!”

“see ya in two years!” goku exclaimed as he and krillin blasted off to the far east onboard kinto'un, heading towards their newest adventure, at the tower that the mysterious martial arts master known as korin calls home!

END OF CHAPTER

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M BACK!!!
> 
> wow, you couldn't believe how long it took writing this freaking chapter!
> 
> anyways, vacations are over, and I'm fully refreshed and can't wait to start the next arc!
> 
> thank you very much for your feedback and for 2000 hits! I really appreciate your time and patience !


	25. korin, the legendary sage

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> goku and krillin heads towards the tower that is home to the legendary master, korin! but first, they must find a way to reach the top, which, as they'll find out, is only the beginning of the many surprises that awaits them, including the appearance of korin himself!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Following is not for profit. it is strictly a fan work meant for personal amusement. Dragon ball, dragon ball z and dragon ball super is property of Akira toriyama, toyotaro, shueisha, Toei animation and shonen jump. please support the official release.
> 
> Some ideas from this fanfic are taken from Lawrence Simpson, AKA: Masakox of teamfourstar fame. check out his what-ifs, they're pretty interesting!

"the world is so different from up here!"

thats what goku said upon looking down at the earth below. goku and krillin were flying under the clouds onboard kinto'un as they continued their flight towards the sky-piercing tower belonging to the mysterious martial arts master, korin. it is there that goku hopes to repair his grandpa's staff, nyoibo. the strong and rare material that composed nyoibo was only produced at the tower, at least according to the two boys's master, muten roshi, the turtle hermit. thanks to the great speed of the supersonic cloud, the boys managed to reach the territory belonging to the crane empire in in no less than 30 minutes. as they continued flying high in the sky, goku couldn't help but look down on the ground.

what he saw was simply breathtaking. vast, green pieces of land stretched to what seemed like eternity, and buildings and town that looked so impressive on the ground were just so tiny upon seeing them for high above. goku didn't thought that the world looked so small from that point of view.

goku then got out of his thoughts when he heard krillin vomit. the bald monk was kneeling in front of the edge of kinto'un, vomitting due to vertigo.

"h-hey, krillin! are you all right?" the monkey boy asked his bald friend.

"y-yeah, i'm fine." said a sick krillin. "its just a little vertigo."

"verti-what?" goku asked.

"vertigo!" krillin answered. "it means i get sick when I'm high up in the air and I look down."

"oh, really?" " goku said. "it must suck for you, considering korin's tower is up in the sky."

"why does he live in that tower, anyway?" krillin asked. "can't he just live in a house, like everyone else?"

"maybe he wants some privacy." goku suggested.

" what, like master roshi?" krillin said. "what's the deal with martial arts masters being lonely hermits?"

when krillin was saying that, goku looked down to find a pretty unusual sight: it was a wall spreading itself almost through the entire border of the crane empire's territory, waving like a snake.

" woah! did you see how long that wall is?" goku asked krillin.

"that's the great wall!" krillin told the monkey boy. " they built it many centuries ago to repel invading countries surrounding them."

"...why would they isolate themselves from the world?" goku asked.

" too many to count." krillin answered. " politics are really complicated, goku. it'd be better if you don't focus on it too much."

"yeah, good idea." the monkey boy said, looking in front of him. then, he saw the long silhouette of a tower in front of them. as they got closer and closer, the silhouette became clearer and clearer, revealing a long pylon made of solid bricks. it looked as if both sides of the pylon had no end, both on the ground and in the air, with the pylon piercing the clouds.

" no doubt about it, that must be korin's tower!" krillin said.

" master roshi's right: it's really tall!" goku exclaimed, amazed at the fact that they are far from the top of the tower!

"w-what are we gonna do?" keillin asked. "surely we can't reach the top on kinto'un!"

"...we never tried." goku said, making krillin suspicious.

"w-wait, y-y-you're kidding, right?" the bald monk said, shaking in nervousness. "y-y-you're not really gonna try to go up on that thing, right?"

" well, it does go to where you wanna go at ludicrous speeds." goku said. "we can reach the top of the tower in no time onboard kinto'un!"

" GOKU, ARE YOU CRAZY??" krillin shouted "I HAVE VERTIGO, DAMMIT! I'M GONNA DIE IF WE EVER GO EVEN THE SLIGHTEST BIT UP!!"

"i've never seen people die from a fear of heights!" goku said. "besides, you can just hang on to me and close your eyes! like that, you won't look down and not have vertigo!"

"no way...no fucking way..." krillin couldn't believe it! nothing would stop goku from doing this insane stunt!

"hang on, krillin!" the monkey boy warned his best friend, who promptly grabbed goku as tight as he could.

"you're crazy!" krillin shouted. "we're gonna die!"

"never tell me the odds!" goku responded. "KINTO'UN, GO UP! FULL SPEED!!" He shouted.

" wait, that's a line from star waAAAAAAARGH!!!"

the supersonic cloud blasted upwards into the clouds as goku and krillin hung on for dear life. the wind blew on their faces at incredible speeds, and they went through the clouds like a knife through butter, the sky darkening further and further the higher they got.

" j-just...a...little...more!" goku exclaimed as the cloud kept rising and rising.

"AAAAAARGH!! W-WHEN WILL THIS STOP?? I DON'T WANNA DIE!!" shouted krillin as he grabbed goku so tight that the monkey boy started feeling pain around his hips. goku thought,like krillin, that this climb was seemingly taking forever. however, goku was a determined little fella, and he continued pushing on, making kinto'un reach ludicrous speeds in order to reach the top of korin's tower.

eventually, his patience was rewarded, as he soon saw a circular shape in the middle of the sky, with the pylons length reaching its end at the top.

"Hey, krillin! we made it!!" goku shouted ecstatically to the bald monk.

" OH YES, THANK GOD!!" krillin shouted as the duo moved closer and closer to the top. krillin expected the cloud to slow down...but it wasn't!

"h-h-hey, goku, slow down!!" krillin shouted.

" we're gonna enter that hole, krillin!" goku said.

" what hole?" krillin asked,until he looked up and saw a bunch of holes underneath the round platform at the top of the tower. "W-WHAT?? ARE YOU INSANE?!? WE'RE GONNA CRASH!!"

"Hold on!!" goku shouted as he pulled on kinto'un in order to position it for entry and to slow it down. he bit his lower lip, pulled on the cloud with all of his strength and almost went flying as both he and his best friend entered the hole and fell on their butts, breaking desks as they crashed on the grounds of korin's tower.

"ugh, krillin, you alright?" goku asked the bald monk, only to see him vomit his life Down the hole they just entered. krillin fell on his knees, sick with intense vertigo. " its alright, krillin, it's over!" the monkey boy reassured his friend.

"n-never...ever...do something like this again!" krillin said as he catched his breath.

"haha, can't guarantee ya that, buddy!" goku laughed, making krillin sigh in fatigue. the monkey boy then looked around where he and his best friend just entered. obviously, there were the holes they just entered in the middle, but, on the walls, there were finely made drawings made on what looked like masonry. the room they were into was circular, with the way leading to two rooms on the right and one room to the left.

"where should we go?" krillin asked goku...who was too distracted by the drawings on the wall.

"its so weird..." goku said,looking at the walls. "...there's all kinds of symbols, animals and naked people on the wall."

"these are hieroglyphs!" krillin said. "its a very ancient form of communication."

" really? what could they mean?" goku said, as he looked at the drawing of a skinny purple cat standing on two legs, wearing Egyptian garb, accompanied by a strange-looking, blue-skinned man, looking down upon a tanned man on his knees, as if he was praying in front of them.

"i have no clue." krillin said. "i'm no expert on ancient languages. Even the best archeologists have trouble deciphering the hieroglyphs!"

"maybe we can ask korin?" goku suggested.

" what makes you think he knows what they mean?" krillin asked.

"i dunno. just guessing, I guess." goku answered.

then, they heard footsteps coming from the floor above them.

" o-oh man, someone's here!" krillin said.

" surely, it must be korin!" goku said as he ran towards the staircase to the room on t left, woth krillin hastily following him.

as they climbed the staircase, krillin stopped at a balcony and looked at the clouds above...and below, making him feel uneasy and ready to vomit again. this time, however, he managed to get back to his senses and continued climbing the stairs.

after 10 more seconds of climbing, goku and krillin finally reached the next floor, where a most unusual sight befell on them: in the middle of the floor was a fat, white cat the size of an oversized rice ball. it was standings on its short back paws and had a calm, serene look on its face. its eyes were closed, and it seems it was in no hurry of opening them. underneath his left paw was a very long wooden staff, its edge looking like a hammerhead.

"uh...hello?" krillin said, not quite sure what to make of this situation.

"greetings, young ones!" the cat said in a grainy voice. "never thought id receive any visitors today!"

"do you know where korin is?" goku asked the cat.

"he's right in front of you!" the cat answered.

" wait, you're korin? the legendary master?" krillin asked, not believing that such an important figure in the martial arts world was...a cat.

"upon seeing me, everybody thinks it's some kind of joke." korin said. "however, your eyes don't deceive you, young ones: I am indeed the legendary meowster, karin!"

cricket sounds were heard.

"...that was lame." both goku and krillin said.

"RAOW, SHUT UP! I'VE PREPARED THAT JOKE FOR YEARS!" korin shouted.

" wait, Karin?" goku realised what he just heard. "isn't your name korin?" he asked the fat cat.

"that's what the western civilisations call me." korin answered,to goku's confusion.

" yeah, that's true." krillin said. "back at the shaolin temple, we had a legendary cat god called Karin!"

" really? a cat god?" goku asked korin.

"that's what most eastern civilisations worshipped me as." the fat cat answered. "I am known by many names across the world. bastet to the berhabers, li shou to the crane empire, ai-apaec to the natives of eagleland."

"...so confusing!" goku said.

"...and some also call me whiskers, the wonder cat." korin said, embarrassed.

"BWAHAHAHAHA!!!" Goku and krillin fell on the floor laughing their butts off, to the anger of the cat master.

" WILL YOU STOP IT?! IT'S NOT EVEN FUNNY! I HATE THAT NAME!" korin complained.

"S-sorry!" goku and krillin apologised.

"anyways..." korin said before clearing his throat. "...where did you get kinto'un?" he asked the boys.

"huh? yo mean, you saw us coming?" krillin asked.

" yeah, I saw you climbing all the way here with kinto'un." korin answered. " have to say, that was a pretty impressive stunt from young boys like you!"

"it was goku's idea!" krillin said pointing at goku. "that crazy fella almost killed me!"

"...you know kinto'un?" goku asked the cat.

"of course!" korin answered. "it belonged to me!"

"huh? really?" goku said, surprised. "I thought it belonged to master roshi!"

"roshi?" korin said, surprised at what he heard. "you mean, muten roshi?" he asked the monkey boy.

goku nodded in response.

"now that's a name I haven't heard in a long time..." korin said, looking at the ceiling. "...so you're his student, boy?" he asked goku.

"actually, he's our master." krillin said, referencing both himself and the monkey boy.

"ho ho! two students? how interesting!" korin exclaimed. "what rings you here, at my tower?

"well, w-"

" no, wait, hold on, stay quiet..." korin interrupted the two boys.

"b-but you just asked us a question!" goku said.

"i know, now stay quiet." the cat ordered 

" uh, why?" krillin asked.

"just do what I say!" the annoyed cat told the boys. after a few seconds of silence, korin began speaking.

"master roshi told you about me and you two both came here so that I train you both and repair son gohan's nyoibo!"

" WHAT???" goku and krillin were stupefied that korin perfectly guessed their intentions without them even speaking! "h-h-how do you know all of that?" goku asked the fat cat.

"heh heh, that's the secret of telepathy!" korin boasted.

"...you just revealed the secret." krillin said.

"...dammit..." sweat ran down on korin's temple. "Anyways, you're son gohan's grandson, boy?" he asked goku.

 

"yup! I'm son goku!" the monkey boy introduced himself. "you know my grandpa?"

 

"Ah, yes! he was roshi's best student!" korin exclaimed. "he was a phenomenon in his prime! didn't know roshi gave him nyoibo! how's he doing nowadays?"

"he's dead." goku answered.

" oh, really? that's unfortunate." korin said. " I would've loved to train him...oh well, training you would make up for it!"

" really? you're gonna train us?" krillin asked.

"now now, let's not get ahead of ourselves!" korin said.

" yeah, I need to rebuild nyoibo!" goku exclaimed. "master roshi told me that the materials to build it is right here."

"indeed, I have all the material needed to build a new staff." korin confirmed. " however...if you wish to both have me train you and build you a new staff..." korin then faced a staircase leading to another floor. "...you'll have to pass a test first! come, follow me!"

the boys did as they were told and followed the fat cat up the staircase. once they reached the next floor, both goku and krillin were amazed at what their eyes laid upon.

in the middle of the floor stood a finely sculpted, multi-staged fountain pouring a deep blue kind of water down its streams. the plates carrying the ponds were made of crystal clear silver, rays of light reflecting on it and the clear water.

korin looked at the boys and smiled. there's something quite funny about seeing children discover the wonders of the world.

"alright, see that fountain over there?" korin pointed at it with his cane. " it contains holy water.  
if you wish for me to fulfill your request, you must reach the holy water first!"

" ah, yeah, master roshi warned us about that!" goku exclaimed.

"and he did wisely in warning you about this test: it took no less than three years for him to succeed!" korin said.

 

"ha! it wont take us that long to pass it! we are two against one!" krillin boasted.

korin looked at the bald monk in a way that implied a challenge.

"let's see you try, then!" korin defied the two youngsters. he then picked up a small flask that was hooked on the fountain, filled it with holy water and hooked it on the pointy edge of his stick. he then wiggled it in front of goku and krillin, as if he was taunting them.

the boys wasted no time, immediately charging towards the big cat. korin, however, showed that despite his big belly, he was incredibly agile, dodging the two boys with ease. many times, goku and krillin tried pouncing on korin, but, alas, they were no predators, as they easily fell prey to korin's godlike instincts and dodging skills time and time again.

eventually, goku and krillin were simply too tired to continue. they would fall down in fatigue, panting heavily as korin stretched and cleaned himself in front of them.

"meow, you may be roshi's students, and its pretty apparent with the way you move..." korin said. "...but its unfortunate that he didn't teach you how to properly use your skills in a disciplined manner. then again, roshi had the same weakness all those years ago."

" "pant pant" d...discipline?" goku wondered out loud, fatigued to the point of being very hungry.

" "pant pant h-how is this cat so...so quick?" krillin asked, not believing the fact that he got humiliated by an animal.

" it's not me who's quick..." korin said. "its you lads who are too reckless, charging as two hungry warriors instead of one tight, disciplined unit!"

these words resonated through goku and krillin's minds...suddenly, a light bulb went on in krillin's head.

" Hey, goku..." krillin called his friend. "...i think we need to plan better."

" yeah!" goku said. "korin's right! we need to work as a team!"

"however..." krillin looked at the cat in front of them. "...something's off here..."

"huh? what do you mean?" goku asked.

" Hey, master korin!" krillin called for the cat's attention. "why are you giving us advice on how to beat you? aren't we supposed to find out how to take the flask on our own?"

korin, upon hearing krillin's question, turned around to face him.

"boy, you have one thing that roshi didn't have..." korin told the bald monk. "...unlike your master, you actually cared to figure out there is a catch!"

"i knew it!"krillin exclaimed. "what's the catch?" he asked.

" now that would be helping you too much, isn't it?" korin mockingly said, irritating the bald monk. "all I'm going to tell you..." as he spoke, he moved towards the left of the fountain, where a pantry stood. "...is that, by working together as a team, you'll find that there are many ways to retrieve the flask!" he then opened the pantry and grabbed a hand-sized bag that was full of strange-looking beans. korin then went back towards the tired boys.

"here, take this!" he said as he tossed two of those beans to goku and krillin.

"huh? what's that?" goku asked, looking at the bean he caught.

"these are senzu beans." korin explained. "one bite, and not only you regain your full strength, but your stomach will be full for 10 days!"

" really?" krillin said, taking a bite. after gulping it, a moment of silence...then, suddenly, krillin lifted his head up, full of energy once again!

"w-woah!"krillin exclaimed, feeling as if he was a brand new boy. "this is amazing! I was tired like hell not too long ago!"

"that's what everybody says everytime they eat a senzu for the first time." korin said.

goku would then eat his bean, feeling energized and ready to take on the world again after eating it.

"amazing!" goku exclaimed, before focusing on the fat cat in front of both him and his best friend krillin. "ok, krillin, let's work as a team!" he told his best friend.

"got any plans?" krillin asked the monkey boy.

"...no, why?"

"THEN WHY ARE YOU TELLING ME TO WORK TOGETHER??" krillin shouted, annoyed at the naivety of goku, much to korin's amusement.

"what's wrong? surely, you're capable of working together?" the fat cat asked.

upon hearing that, goku and krillin charged together. this tine, they tried to outflank the cat,beating him at his own game. they would relentlessy keep on chasing after the flask all day long, completely rejuvenated by the senzu beans that korin gave them.

when the night fell, goku and krillin were laying on the floor, completely breathless as they were exhausted from chasing that damn flask. korin, meanwhile, was the last cat standing, looking at the young boys with disappointment.

"now now, you really thought you would beat a cat at the game of agility?" korin asked, but the boys were too tired to continue. "ah well, at least, you actually tried to work together. you still got a lot to learn concerning discipline, though..."

"s...senzu...gimme senzu!" goku begged.

" I would gladly give you one..." korin said. he then looked at the night sky. "...however, it's getting late. it's time to rest, lads." he said as he went towards another set of stairs.

"r-rest?" goku said.

"whew, finally!" krillin breathed a sigh of relief. the boys then followed korin up the stairs, where they entered his bedroom. it contained a simple bed located near a very impressive bookshelf containing all sorts of books on various topics.

"rest is a very important component of a martial artist's life." korin told the boys. "one's body must always recuperate after an intense effort. it allows the body to repair and strengthen itself in between training sessions and fights."

"hey, that's what my grandpa told me!" goku said.

" no surprises there." korin said. "son gohan was know to be a heavy sleeper. he almost missed a semi-final matchup at the tenkaichi budokai because of it!"

"so...where are we gonna sleep? I only see one bed in here." krillin said.

"don't worry, I got you covered!" the cat said as he laid a blanket on the ground. "there, here's your bed!"

"why are we sleeping on the ground?" krillin asked.

" I'm used to it. the number of times bulma made me sleep on the ground during our quest for the dragon balls..." goku said.

" hey, this bed ain't big enough for the three of us!" korin said.

" well, since you're a cat, you can sleep on our laps while we sleep on the bed." goku suggested.

"WHO DO YOU THINK I AM, A MERE HOUSE CAT??" korin shouted, angry. "I'm the cat sage! this is my bed! I don't want any pesky human to stain my beautiful bed! do you know how much money I spent for this?"

"its alright, goku, we'll sleep on the blanket." krillin said. "besides, his bed must be full of cat hair!"

" pff, as if it's a bad thing!" korin said. "nobody's going to die from cat hair!"

"there are people who are allergic, you know?" krillin said.

"...wait, you're serious?" korin asked.

"you mean you don't know?" krillin said.

" no, I didn't!" korin said. "anyways, that's not important! what's important is to have a good night sleep, especially if ya want a chance to drink the holy water!"

"drink it?" goku asked.

" yup!" korin confirmed.

"why drink it?" krillin asked. "I thought holy water was not drinkable!"

" meow, this ain't no ordinary holy water, boy!" korin said. "in fact, it is quite drinkable! and it tastes good!"

"what's so special about it?" goku asked the fat cat. 

"once a person worthy of drinking it does so, he or she is granted tremendous strength!" korin explained,to the winded of the two boys.

"...how do we prove ourselves worthy of drinking it?" goku asked.

"you'll know by finding a way to get the flask." korin answered.

the gang would soon fall asleep, putting an end to a hard day of training. suddenly, in the middle of the night, krillin woke up. he was still thinking about finding a way to retrieve the holy water flask, to the point of almost being obsessed with it.

then, while he was thinking, he saw something on the desk near the door to korin's bedroom.

it was the flask!

" hey, goku!" the bald monk whispered to the monkey boy, waking him up.

" W-What is it, krillin?" goku asked, tired.

" the flask is over there!" krillin said, pointing at it, capturing goku's attention. "now's our chance!"

"y...you mean, steal it?" goku was confused.

"hey, this is a golden opportunity!" krillin said enthusiastically. "were gonna drink it and become super strong! come on, buddy!"

goku looked at the flask. he didn't understand. why is krillin, his best friend, asking him to steal something? stealing is not right!

"...no!"

" what??" krillin was surprised at goku's answer. "b-b-but this might be our only chance! we can't beat the guy in a fair fight!"

" yes, we can!" goku said, now angry at what his best friend was telling him. "he said we can only drink it if we beat him, meaning it's possible to do so! what you're trying to do is wrong, krillin!"

" oh, come on, you can't be serious?!" krillin was now being irritated by goku's stubborness. "who cares about winning fairly? in life, anything is fair game if you want something!"

" to the point of doing something bad?" goku said.

" NO, IT'S NOT BAD IF IT'S JUSTIFIED!" krillin said, angry. "I DONT WANNA SPEND THREE FUCKING YEARS OF MY LIFE TRYING TO CATCH A DAMN FLASK! STOP THINKING THE WORLD IS IN BLACK AND WHITE, GOKU! THERE IS NOTHING INHERITELY GOOD OR BAD, JUST SHADES OF GREY! I learned that back when I traveled completely alone like a drifter! but, of course, you don't know what it's like, cause you always had a home and people around you!"

after he said that, krillin stormed out of the room, completely bypassing the flask, with goku following him, hoping that he won't do anything stupid.

when they reach the fountain,krillin tried to drink it, but goku pulled him away, and krillin began fighting back, which prompted the two to fight each other. after some minutes of martial arts therapy, GOKU brought krillin down with a hip throw and fell on his lap, completely immobilising him. the two boys were panting, wondering why we're they fighting like this.

then, krillin began crying. he realised that he was about to do something stupid. something he might have regretted dearly. as he was crying, goku, feeling sympathy for his best friend, hugged him tightly, feeling krillin's tears on his shoulder.

"i know what it's like, being alone and being forced to take care of yourself." goku told the bald monk. "and I know that, sometimes, you just wanna take the easy route...however, the hard road is the one that allows you to grow and become stronger....you, of all people, should know this!"

krillin didn't respond to this statement.

"...after all, you traveled around the world on your own to find master roshi, right?" goku asked him.

"...yeah..."

" surely, you thought about giving up during that time?"

"...yeah, I did...but I kept going, anyway..." krillin answered. "...and I eventually found him!" he was beginning to smile again.

"exactly!" goku exclaimed. " and you didn't give up when you faced that bully at the tournament, just like you didnt give up on finding master roshi!"

"...yeah!" krillin said, having calmed himself. he then smiled at goku, and the boys gave each other a hug. both of them were crying tears of joy.

then, krillin let go of goku, looked at him and said.

"...tomorrow, let's go get that stupid flask!"

" haha, you bet!" goku said while laughing. "got any plans?" he asked the bald monk.

 

"actually, I thought of something..."

 

 

the sun shone brightly in the sky as it illuminated korin's tower in all of its beauty. inside the tower, the cat sage himself stood in front of the holy water fountain, with goku and krillin standing behind him, bursting with confidence. something that korin noticed.

"oh ho! you seem to be in a jolly mood!" the cat said to the two boys. "you slept well?"

"oh yes!" krillin said. "and we know how to get that flask!"

" oh? interesting..." korin motioned the boys to come after him.

goku and krillin charged at the same time. korin was ready to dodge...but then, both goku and krillin disappeared, leaving afterimage of themselves as they ran circles around the cat.

" the afterimage strike...impressive!" korin said. he then focused his stare somewhere In the middle...then, suddenly:

"YOU'RE RIGHT THERE!" shouted korin as he swung his staff in a half-circle, thinking he hit both goku and krillin.

...but they were afterimages, too! goku and krillin then appeared behind korin.

"YOU'RE FINISHED!!" both boys said as they plunged towards the flask.

but korin saw it coming! he performed an afterimage of his own, prompting goku and krillin to headbutt each other!

"ow! what the hell?"krillin said as he rubbed his head in pain.

"you're not the only ones who know this technique!" korin said.

goku and krillin then kept on doing their synchronised assault, with korin gradually finding it harder and harder to dodge,as he found out that the boys have improved their teamwork considerably.

then, the boys pounced from all directions at once. korin managed to dodge goku...but then, sees that krillin was a bout to hit him! he put his staff in front of him...only to meow out loud as, out of nowhere, krillin tickled him!

by reflex, korin threw his staff away, unable to get out of the hellish tickling krillin was giving him.

unfortunately, the staff was thrown over the fence and was falling into the ground below.

"oh crap!" both krillin and korin shouted at the same time.

then, their faces would turn pale as a ghost at what they would soon see.

goku, upon seeing the staff go over the fence, immediately bounced back up and jumped over the fence!

" OH NO YOU DON'T!!" goku shouted as he plunged to grab the wooden staff.

"NOOOO, GOKUUUU!!" both krillin and korin shouted as they saw goku's suicidal dive.

and then, by some miracle, goku caught the staff in mid-air!

" KINTO'UN!!" he immediately shouted as he fell down the considerable heights between the top of korin's tower and the ground below.

soon enough, the supersonic cloud arrived and immediately grabbed goku in mid-air bringing him back to the top of the tower, under the flabbergasted eyes of krillin and korin.

"YEAH!! WE DID IT!!" goku shouted as he showed the holy water flask in his hands.

"that...was...unreal!" krillin said as he did the Russian victory dance with goku. korin, meanwhile, was simply speechless. he never thought that that monkey boy would risk his life to get what he wants!

"well...that was something..." the cat said.

"so, korin..." goku said. "...will you build a new nyoibo?"

"...well, you did retrieve the flask, so I guess I don't have any choice!" korin answered.

"yay!" goku shouted.

" however... " korin said. "...there is only one thing you need to do before i build you a new staff and efore you drink the holy water..."

"what is it?" krillin asked.

"...you have to climb my tower!"

"WHAT?? ARE YOU SERIOUS?!?" Both goku and krillin shouted in stupefaction.

"i'm dead serious!" korin answered. "you skipped the first part of the training by coming here on my supersonic cloud! if you want the strength of the holy water and a new nyoibo, you have to do every step of the training!"

"AW, COME ON!!" both goku and krillin complained as they tried to persuade korin to give them mercy...

 

 

meanwhile, in a dark room in the middle of nowhere, the ebony-skinned man now known as commander emerald was sweating in nervousness. the reason why? he was reviewing the footage of the battle of muscle tower, especially footage of the fight between the invaders and super android 13. he was not alone, however, as an old man was watching along with him. that man in question? it was his boss.

he had a skinny build hidden underneath a green and yellow kung fu robe. his face, shaped like a large cup, had wrinkles all over it. his eyes were covered with red sunglasses, and a thin, fu manchu-esque mustache could be found above his lips, coloured the same lifeless grey as his hair, which was shaped like a crane's wings. in fact, his hair wasn't the only thing crane-related about him, as not only was he wearing a crane hat, but the man in question is the crane hermit himself, shen, master roshi's arch-enemy and founder of the red ribbon army!

"...care to explain how?" the crane hermit asked comm. emerald, who was sweating like a pig.

“I…I beg your pardon, sir?” emerald nervously asked.

“don’t play dumb with me!” shen told emerald in a menacing voice. “how in the blue hell did the red ribbon army, the crane empire's greatest and most feared secret weapon, got obliterated by a bunch of insolent fools? AND THAT BASTARD ROSHI, AT THAT?!?” he suddenly shouted as the computer showed footage of goku, krillin and muten roshi fighting together.

“i-i-it was gero who kidnapped the monkey boy!” emerald desperately tried to save his ass. “ w-w-we didn’t know he was from the turtle school! He’ll, even gero didn’t knew who he was!”

“I DON’T GIVE A DAMN ABOUT THIS GERO FOOL!” the crane hermit shouted. “the emperor trusted you with leading our troops to aid him in his quest for glory! And…you…FAILED!!”

“b-b-but boss…” emerald was fearing for his own life. “…t-they are from the turtle SCHOOL! They always compete in that tournament the empire is hosting in two years!”

“the tenkaichi budokai? What of it?” shen asked the former commander.

“well, don’t you understand?” emerald asked his boss. “ since they always compete at the tournament, they’ll be smack dab in the middle of our territory! And that girl that accompanied them is none other than bulma briefs! She invented a device that can locate dragon balls! If they come to the tournament, not only will we be able to torture them into giving us the dragon radar , but you’ll finally put an end to the turtle school once and for all!”

Upon hearing what emerald had to say, shen thought about it.

“hmm, not a bad plan at all!” he said while smiling. That smile had no good intentions behind it.

“yeah, but now that I think about it…” emerald said. “…the tournament is only two years from now. Wouldn’t the turtle school students be training during that timeframe?” 

“HA! Not even a hundred years of training would be enough for even roshi himself to beat the crane school, the strongest martial arts school in the world!” shen boasted.”Not even those pacifist shaolin monks, and not even those meditating fools at wu tang!”  
“ I dunno, wu tang ain’t nothing to mess with!” emerald said.

“my best students will make them beg for mercy! And that’s what they’ll do at the budokai!” shen said.

“wait, you mean…”

“yes, you heard me right, commander!” shen said. “the best students of the crane school will compete at the tournament. Nothing better to show the world the crane empire’s superiority than crushing our competition at OUR tenkaichi budokai, huah huah huah!”

“…who will you send?” emerald asked.

“I know exactly who to send.” The crane hermit said. “my first fighter is a prodigy in the fighting arts, and quite possibly the best student we ever produced at the school. None other than the emperor's bodyguard himself, tien shinhan!” as he said that, a tall, muscular young man entered the dark room. He was bald, was wearing the same kung fu robes and crane hat as the crane hermit, and, unusually, had a third eye on his forehead. He had a stern, stoic look on his face.

“…you sure he’s ready, boss?” emerald asked master shen. “cause he’s pretty young…”

“I was born ready!” tien shinhan confidently said, albeit still keeping his stoic poker face.

“that’s the spirit, tien!” shen said. “however, you won’t be alone, as I want you to learn from what your partner will do in the ring.”

“huh? Who are you referring to?” emerald asked his boss.

“the man behind you!”

However, before emerald could turn around, a tongue stabbed his temple! After the initial shock, emerald groaned as his eyes began emptying themselves from all life they had. Shen watched in glee, while tien shinhan was stunned as he was powerless to stop commander emerald from losing his life in such a swift fashion.

As comm. emerald's body fell lifeless on the floor, the man whom the tongue belonged to appeared under the light. It was a slim man In his late 30s, wearing a pink kung fu chang pao with dark blue pants underneath. His face was cold, emotionless, and his eyes were that of a trained professional killer. His black hair was tied in a ponytail, and he had a thick mustache underneath his pointy nose.

“…pleased to kill you.” The assassin said to the dead body of comm. Emerald.

“tien, I hope you’ll learn a lot underneath general tao’s wing at the tournament!” shen told the bald triclop. “you’ve got enormous potential, my son, and I feel that, once you’ve learned the killer instinct, you'll be unstoppable!”

“yes, sifu!” tien exclaimed. “it would be an honor to fight alongside general tao pai pai!” he said, having a staredown with the assassin.

“all right, then, let’s start training!” shen said as he left the dark room, with tao and tien following him. As he entered the court of the crane school, shen smiled sinisterly, as he only thought of one thing, and one thing only:

“Roshi, you better be ready, cause in two years, you will finally pay the price for your foolish actions, all those years ago!”

 

END OF CHAPTER

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> you know why I don't like writing? it's because, everytime I write a chapter, I have the general idea and the order of events scheduled in my head,but every time, I'm like, "OOH, THIS IDEA'S GOOD, I'LL PUT THAT IN!" or "OOH, I LOVE THAT LINE, I'LL PUT THAT IN!" and it goes on and on and on and, in the end, the writing process becomes very long and tedious! not to mention checking for errors and plot holes and shit.
> 
> i must have a shit ton of determination to always end up finishing these chapters!


	26. reunion at capsule corps! prelude to the 21st tenkaichi budokai!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> two years have passed since goku and krillin began training at korin's tower, and noe they have finally completed their training and can now drink the holy water! will their strength increase exponentially? and has yamcha improved enough under master roshi to stand a chance against the boys? all these questions and more as the gang finally reunites at capsule corps as the 21st tenkaichi budokai and the crane empire awaits!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Following is not for profit. it is strictly a fan work meant for personal amusement. Dragon ball, dragon ball z and dragon ball super is property of Akira toriyama, toyotaro, shueisha, Toei animation and shonen jump. please support the official release.
> 
> Some ideas from this fanfic are taken from Lawrence Simpson, AKA: Masakox of teamfourstar fame. check out his what-ifs, they're pretty interesting!

"ka...me...ha...me...HAAA!!!"

a big, blue blast of ki expelled from yamcha's hands as he shoots it at a waterfall nearby, splitting it in half. for two years now, the former desert bandit-turned-college baseball star has been training rigorously under the turtle hermit, muten roshi, in preparation for the next tenkaichi budokai. while baseball is a big part of his life now, seeing kids like son goku and krillin becoming strong motivated him to keep on training so as to not get outclassed by a bunch of children.

and, by the look on his face, yamcha was proud of his progress, as he watched his kamehameha split the waterfall. when he first started training, he realised that what Jackie chun, the man he lost to at the tournament, said to him was the truth: he had too much excessive movements in his attacks, and he could only manage a weak kamehameha. but now, he is faster, more nimble on his feet and a more cautious fighter.

master roshi, meanwhile, was watching from a rock nearby, smoking his pipe. he let out a "oh!" when he saw yamcha's kamehameha split the waterfall in half. he has his doubts about the desert bandit when he took him under his wings...but now, after seeing how much progress he made in two years, he can be proud of him.

" ho ho, that was impressive!" roshi said. " those two years of training worked wonders on you, yamcha!"

" yeah! it's amazing!" yamcha exclaimed. "I feel like I've reached a whole new level!"

"true, true..." roshi said. "...however, you should keep your expectations at a reasonable level. it's plausible that you will face tougher opposition at the tournament this time around."

"yeah..." yamcha said, looking downwards. "...especially with goku and krillin training under korin."

"indeed..." roshi said. "...these two are already monstrous. I can't even fathom how strong they would become under korin!"

"...nonetheless, I'm pretty confident about my chances!" yamcha said. "now, I should get going. bulma must be waiting for me!"

"of course! no time to waste!" master roshi said as he jumped in yamcha's car, and off they went to the capsule Corp. headquarters. during the two-year training, yamcha managed to have some free time where he visited his girlfriend bulma as much as possible...when sponsors, training and baseball didn't get in the way.

when yamcha and roshi arrived at capsule Corp., they were greeted by a horde of fangirls waving banners, squeeing once they saw yamcha arriving. yamcha, the man who was once afraid of girls, was now pretty popular with the ladies at his college, and his sponsorship deal with a popular perfume brand made him even more popular, along with his exceptional skills in baseball.

yamcha simply waved at his fangirls, who only screamed louder in ecstasy. roshi waved and posed at them, thinking they were screaming for him.

but then, suddenly, as yamcha continued waving at the horde, he was dragged by the ear into the capsule Corp. building! it was an angry bulma who pulled her boyfriend's ear.

once they were inside the building, bulma closed the window featuring the horde, and sighed in frustration.

"ow! what was that for?" yamcha asked his girlfriend, caressing his ear.

"stop playing stupid!" bulma said, surprising yamcha. "you know damn well what's wrong!"

"come on, babe!" yamcha said. " you really think I care about these chicks?"

"chicks?" bulma was even more furious. "do you even listen to what you're saying?"

yamcha then sighed. "what, is it about the training? or baseball?"

" no!" bulma said, pouting. "you know I'm ok with your training with roshi and you playing baseball. you know it's because of..."

"oh no..." yamcha facepalmed. "...you're still mad about the party?"

"OF COURSE, I'M STILL MAD ABOUT THE PARTY!" she shouted.

"i was drunk!" yamcha said. "and I'm major! I'm allowed to drink!"

"you're also allowed to not make out with another girl!" bulma said.

" IT WAS ONLY ONCE!" yamcha shouted. "and like I said, I was drunk! it's for the perfume!"

"oh yeah?" bulma said. "then why does everytime you come back here, you smell of female fragrances instead of polo Ralph Lauren?"

yamcha couldn't find an answer to that one.

however, before bulma could shed a tear of anger...

" OH, BULMA!" her mother called. "goku and his bald friend are here! they wanna see you!"

upon hearing that, both bulma and yamcha were surprised, and immediately walked towards the living room. they couldn't believe it: goku and krillin have finished their training! while it is true that two years have since passed and that they promised they would see each other at this year's tenkaichi budokai, they were still excited to see them again. yamcha wondered how strong they became, while bulma was wondering how much goku and krillin had grown.

upon seeing them in the living room, they were stunned to see both of them dressed in robes made of leopard and tiger skin, as if they directly came out of prehistoric times. not only that, but they realised that they haven't even grown an inch! bulma thought they must be late bloomers.

" Hey, bulma! yamcha!" goku exclaimed as he saw his dearly-missed friends.

"goku! krillin!" both bulma and yamcha exclaimed in turn.

"you grew your hair back?" krillin asked the desert bandit.

" yeah. I didn't trim it, I was too busy training with master roshi." yamcha answered, touching his grown-back long hair. "man, I dunno what the hell you kids and bulma did to survive, but it was hell!"

"i thought it went pretty well, compared to what korin sent us through!" goku said.

" haha, yeah, can't even begin to fathom!" yamcha said.

" what about you, guys?" bulma asked the kids. "why are you dressed like cavemen?"

" Oh, that?" goku said, stretching his leopard-skin robe. "that's because, on the way to your house, we stopped at mount paozu for the night. I took the opportunity to show krillin where me and my grandpa lived!"

"how were you able to live in such a small shack?" krillin asked.

"...and then, suddenly, while we were taking our baths down the pond, we saw a tiger steal our gis!" goku said.

" wait, what?"

i know, right?" goku said to his pirple-haired friend. "not only that, but he ate them! he thought our clothes were some kind of food!"

"so i told goku that we should get outta here and buy some clothes in a shop nearby, cause, yknow, there was a freaking tiger in front of us..." krillin added. "...but then, the Looney son of a gun actually attacked the tiger!"

" WHAT??" both bulma and yamcha exclaimed. "goku, what the hell? you could've been killed!" bulma said.

"nah, no chance, that tiger was pretty weak." goku said, stunning his friends even more. "besides, I was hungry, too, so we ate it."

"you mean YOU ate it!" krillin corrected the monkey boy. "no way I'm eating a tiger!"

" yeah, besides, goku, tigers are a protected species!" yamcha said. "wildlife protection agents would be angry!"

" really? sorry..." goku said.

"and the leopard skin?" bulma asked, pointing at goku's robe.

" yeah, I was getting there..." goku said. "...then, shortly after, a leopard pounced on us, thinking we were defenceless! all it took was one kick and he was out cold! and, as you can see, we skinned him, too! then, on the way here, we stopped by a tailor, who made us these clothes!"

 

"wow, you really wanna get crucified by greenpeace!" bulma sarcastically said.

"what's Greenpeace?" goku asked.

then, bulma's mom appeared in the room. she was wearing a black dress, and she looked as jubilant as ever.

" wow, it's been two years since we saw you, goku!" she said. "you've grown...in fact, you didn't grow at all!"

" yeah, that's weird..." goku said, thinking. "...bulma told me that when I get older, I would grow up...guess it'd be for later...man, puberty is weird!"

everybody blushed and laughed at what goku just said. bulma blushed even more so, since that was a direct reference to their "birds and the bees" talk two years ago! the purple-haired scientist then gave an intense glare at goku, the monkey boy realising what he just said and subsequently apologised to bulma, as it was supposed to be a secret.

" anyways, what's the deal with the horde of girls outside?" krillin asked, looking at a window that was swarmed with yamcha's army of fangirls. bulma immediately closed the window in response.

"goddamn, they're annoying!" bulma murmured underneath her breath.

"what's wrong, bulma? what did these girls have done to you?" goku asked.

"None of your business!" bulma answered before going to her room.

"bulma, don't be so rude! especially to a child!" panchi told her daughter. bulma only pouted and went to the living room, giving yamcha an intimidating glare in the process.

" why did she looked at you like that, yamcha?" goku asked the desert bandit.

"goku...bulma's right, it's none of your business." yamcha said in a disappointed tone as he left to find master roshi. confused, goku turned around to face bulma's mother, who was happy to tell the kids what's going on.

"you see, yamcha is pretty popular with girls at his college!" panchi explained. " and bulma doesn't like it when yamcha is around other girls!"

" why?" goku asked. "he's not afraid of girls anymore. what are they gonna do to him? and what did those girls do to bulma, anyways?"

" oh, silly boy!" panchi said while giggling at goku's innocence, pinching him on the cheeks, something which the monkey boy dreaded everytime since they first met. " you'll understand when you grow up! you're such a sweet boy! I'm sure you'll become a handsome, caring husband!" she said as she went to the wardrobe.

"...i didn't understand a single thing she said, but it must be a good thing!" goku told krillin.

" you, being married? only when pigs will fly!" krillin said.

"well, oolong can fly, but only if he transforms into a flying animal." goku said.

"whose oolong?" krillin asked.

" the talking pig, remember?"

"oh yeah, right! he was spectaying at the budokai, right?"

" yup!"

"now, boys..." panchi said, pulling out two kid-sized tuxedos from the wardrobe. "...how bout we change you into something less prehistoric?"

 

a while later, the gang were gathered around the table along with the briefs for dinner. goku and krillin were very happy to see master roshi again, and the turtle hermit was, too.

" my, my, you have become real martial artists!" roshi said upon looking at his students. "just by the way you're handling yourselves, you act like you've grown considerably! korin has done well!"

"oh man, you were right, master!" krillin said. "that training was hell!"

"hahaha, I never told any lies!" roshi said.

"yeah, right, you old-ass Pinocchio!" bulma said in her head.

" but wait, if you came back after 2 years..." roshi wondered out loud. "...then that means you managed to do everything?"

" yup! every tests!" goku said.

"amazing!" roshi said. "I take that the two years were spent chasing after the holy water flask?"

" no, it only took one day." goku said.

" WHAT?? O-O-ONLY ONE DAY??" Rosh was dumbfounded. true, they were two, so maybe it was easier...but only one day?

" HA, looks like the boys already surpassed you, hermit!" yamcha said. bulma didn't react. she looked like she didn't wanted to be here...at least, that's how goku interpreted the look on her face. the monkey boy was worried about his best friend. it's not like her to be in that mood.

"but the hardest part was climbing the tower!" krillin told master roshi. "it took us three days to climb it all! thankfully, we ate senzu beans beforehand, so we weren't hungry."

"so you managed to do it all in only a couple of days...unbelievable!" master roshi was proud of how much progress his students had made.

"so, how did it taste like? the holy water, I mean?" dr. briefs asked. all this talk about climbing a 25.000-feet tall tower and holy water that granted divine strength fascinated him.

"well, actually..." goku began...

 

A FEW DAYS AGO...

"here, have some holy water, my friends! you earned it!" korin, the legendary cat sage, told goku and krillin, who were sweating all around and were breathing heavily, yet smiling in satisfaction. finally, they accomplished their training, and were now ready to be granted divine strength from the holy fountain!

without further ado, the fat cat took off the famed flask from the edge of his wooden stick, and presented it to goku and krillin. goku was the first to take the flask, staring at it with anticipation and excitement.

he then took a drink...

he then gulped, closing his eyes in anticipation....

 

....then...nothing?

goku opened his eyes, wondering what just happened...or rather, why did nothing happen? he expected to feel an incredible surge of power...alas, nothing happened.

"...you sure it's holy water?" goku asked korin in confusion.

"what do you mean?" krillin asked. "how did it taste like?" he asked goku.

" it tasted like regular water to me." goku answered, giving the flask to krillin, who drank it himself...only to be just as confused about the lack of anything happening to his body as goku.

"b...but why is nothing happening to me?" krillin asked to himself before facing korin. "hey, korin, why is nothing happening? did you really gave us holy water?"

korin then simply laughed, confusing the boys even more.

" do not worry, lads, you definitely unlocked your hidden potential, I can tell you that!"

"huh?" goku and krillin didn't understood what he meant.

" the sheer fact that you're still alive after drinking the holy water shows that you have become strong both physically and mentally." korin explained. "if you weren't, you would have died by now!"

"D-DIED??" goku and krillin had chills down their spines upon hearing that.

" yes." korin confirmed. "holy water, to one who is not worthy of drinking it, can be a terrible poison, deadlier than even a box jellyfish's venom!"

"jellyfishes can kill people?" goku asked, surprised.

" oh, yes, especially box jellyfishes!" the fat cat answered.

" but they're so cute-looking, though." goku said.

"appearances can be deceiving, lad!" korin said. "I mean, can you imagine a legendary martial master being a cat?" he said, with krillin laughing in return.

"...like you?" goku asked with complete seriousness.

"...that was a rhetorical question..." korin said, sweat dropping from the back of his head. "...anyways, looks can be deceiving. the same goes to the holy water. you may not feel any difference in strength now, but when you'll compete in the budokai...you'll definitely notice!"

goku and krillin looked at their fists,, feeling that, during the two years spent training with korin, they ended up grown up andreadybto take on the world. they also felt that their bond between each other grew stronger than ever before, as if they became brothers of sorts.

"thank you so much, master korin! we learned a lot under you!" the boys said, bowing down in front of the fat cat.

" it has been a pleasure to have you as my students!" korin answered back. "now is the time for you to go! roshi and your friends must be dying to see you again!"

"right!" both boys said at the same time. "KINTO'UN!!" goku shouted as he called the supersonic cloud, which appeared in front of him.

goku and krillin climbed up on it and waved goodbye at the white cat that trained them for two long years. the cloud then blasted off to the distance.

as korin watched the two boys disappear from his sight, he let out a satisfied giggle. he actually watched the incident where goku refused to steal the flask alongside krillin. in fact, he deliberately put the flask on the shelf in order to tempt the boys, see if they are disciplined and had good morals. after they managed to settle their dispute and decide to team up together to win the right to drink the holy water fair and square, he knew, at that moment, that both goku and krillin were worthy of being his students.

"heh, not bad, roshi...not bad." korin murmured, as he went back to sleep.

 

BACK TO THE PRESENT

 

"my goodness, what a thrilling story!" bulma's mom said as the boys finished telling it.

" while anthromorphs as a species do exist, it's still surprising to hear that this legendary martial arts master is in fact a cat!" Dr. briefs added.

" gotta say, I'm very proud of you, boys!" roshi told goku and krillin. " never thought you'd manage to complete korin's training in record time like that!"

"well, they did work as a team during that time, so it definitely helped." bulma said.

"haha, yeah! me and krillin, together, we're unstopable!" goku boasted, giving his bald friend a high five.

"right on, bro!" krillin answered back.

" so how strong exactly did you become?" bulma asked.

"we dunno..." krillin responded. "...theres only one way to find out."

"yeah, the budokai!" goku said.

panchi and Dr. briefs wished them good luck in that endeavour, while roshi and yamcha were sweating heavily at the thought of facing goku in battle at the tournament!

"hey, hermit..." yamcha whispered to his master. "...you drank the holy water too, right?"

"yeah..." roshi whispered back.

"...how strong you think the boys had become?"

"they were already really good before..." roshi said. "...now, with the holy water in their veins? they must be monstrous!"

"GULP!"

 

"if I heard correctly, it's the crane empire who will host the tenkaichi budokai this year, right?" dr. briefs asked.

" yup!" roshi answered. "on the condition that the country opens up its borders."

"yeah, what's the deal with that?" goku asked.

"the crane empire sees the budokai as the perfect opportunity to increase its influence across the world." bulma answered. "it's economical strength is immensely strong, and for years, other countries, especially the western world, wanted access to its lucrative market. the budokai would be the starting point to, potentially, a globalisation of the market, with the crane empire as the key piece on the board."

goku didn't understand a single thing about what bulma just said.

"basically, they wanna take over the world." krillin explained to goku.

"oh...but isn't that a bad guy thing to do? goku asked krillin.

"it's a lot more complex than that..." Dr. briefs said. "...politics can be a real pain in the butt!"

"no doubt shen influenced the crane emperor to host the budokai." roshi said.

"yeah, yamcha told me that the guy who formed the red ribbon army was an old friend of yours?" bulma asked the turtle hermit.

"yeah..." roshi confirmed. "...a while after we became enemies, shen returned to his home country, where he turned into the kind of ruthless politician who would use his influence and stab people in the back to get what he wants. it's thanks to his ruthlessness that he became the emperor's right hand man. some say he actually is the one who controlling the crane empire from the shadows...won't surprise me the least!"

" he's that much of a bad guy?" goku asked.

"alas, yes." roshi said. " it's a shame, as he was a good friend back in the day...an idealist, but a good man."

" shen... isn't he the crane school's grand master?" yamcha asked.

" yup! the one and only!" roshi confirmed.

" i thought so!"

"you know him, yamcha?" goku asked.

"the crane school is one of the most renowned martial arts school." krillin said. " they produce world class fighters, and win multiple tournaments."

"they are also known for being extremely arrogant." yamcha added. "and they often challenge other schools, and were known to show no mercy to their opponents."

" why? don't they understand it's just a competition?" bulma asked, slightly offended at how ruthless the crane school fighters seemed to be.

" they are shen's students, after all." roshi answered.

" and the crane empire always boast themselves as superior to every other nation." Dr. briefs said. "it wouldn't surprise me that they would send the crane school's best students to compete at their budokai as a way to show their superiority."

"oh my, such cold-hearted men!" panchi exclaimed.

"well, it doesn't matter if they keep boasting about how strong they are, I'll show them to never underestimate their opponents!" goku said.

" I'll have to warn you first..." roshi told both goku and krillin. "...they may talk big, but the crane warriors back it up immensely! this won't be an easy tournament, that's for sure!"

"yeah, he's right..." yamcha said.

"its alright! we're all in this together!" krillin said, high giving goku again.

" hey, bulma, you're gonna compete?" goku asked his purple-haired friend.

" goku, I told you, I'm not fighting again...ever!"

"aw, come on, dear, you were so awesome at the previous tournament!" bulma's mom told her daughter.

"mom, those crane guys they talked about sound like sadistic psycopaths!" bulma exclaimed. " why aren't they already in jail?"

"because they didn't kill any people, despite beating other schools to an often bloody pulp." roshi answered.

" b-but that's basically assault! they're not even taking this as a competition!" bulma said.

"its alright, bulma." goku assured her. "if theyever go too far, I'll stop them!"

goku then looked at master roshi.

"when are we going to the budokai?" he asked the turtle hermit.

"...i already ordered tickets for us three and yamcha." roshi answered. "our flight will be next week."

"oh, we wanna go, too! it was so exciting last time we went there!" bulma's mother said.

" never thought I'd knew you loved martial arts so much !" Dr. briefs told his wife.

"it's all thanks to you boys and my kick-ass daughter, bulma!"

"mom...did you just swear?" bulma asked, stupefied.

"man, I can't wait to show you what I've got!" yamcha exclaimed.

"yeah! can't wait to see how strong you've become, yamcha!" goku said.

"i can split waterfalls with my kamehameha now! that's how strong I've become!" yamcha boasted.

" just wait till you see the strength we gainegained from the holy water!" krillin said, making yamcha eat his words.

" that Jackie chun guy will surely be there too..." goku said.

" indeed, he might be!" roshi said. "he became the oldest champion in tenkaichi budokai history. surely, that will motivate him to enter again!"

"then I can't wait to face him and beat him, this time!" goku said, making roshi sweat hard.

as everybody continued talking during the remainder of dinner, master roshi couldnt help but smile. he was happy at how much his students have grown into not only strong fighters, but exemplary human beings, as well. he, too, can't wait to don his Jackie chun disguise and fight at the tournament again.

however, he is also aware that he is gonna head knee deep into enemy territory.

 

and he has a feeling that this won't be just a simple martial arts tournament...

 

...that shen will surely be looking to put an end to the conflict between him and his former best friend...

 

that maybe...

...just maybe....

 

...something big will happen...

something ancient...and wicked.

something he never thought he'd see again...

 

"i have a bad feeling about this..."

 

END OF CHAPTER

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ooh, boy, you can't even believe how excited I am to finally write my versions of my favorite arcs in the original dragon ball! If you loved my version of the red ribbon army arc, then you haven't seen nothing yet!
> 
> also, I've just started playing bayonetta and seen detective pikachu. both of these things are so good! in fact, detective pikachu inspired me and my GF to plan An L.A noire-style fic based on what kind of crimes we can commit with Pokemon. I think this will be our next fanfic after I'm done with this one.


	27. enter the forbidden city of danhua!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> at last, the gang has arrived in the crane empire, and they visit the capital city of danhua on the way to the 21st tenkaichi budokai. once arrived at the forbidden city that hosts the tournament, goku and his friends meet their opponents, including an unexpected appearance by the emperor!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Following is not for profit. it is strictly a fan work meant for personal amusement. Dragon ball, dragon ball z and dragon ball super is property of Akira toriyama, toyotaro, shueisha, Toei animation and shonen jump. please support the official release.
> 
> Some ideas from this fanfic are taken from Lawrence Simpson, AKA: Masakox of teamfourstar fame. check out his what-ifs, they're pretty interesting!

a hot summer day befell the danhua international airport, with multiple Boeing 737s landing and taking off from the various lanes across its fields. flight stewarts led the landing planes to their parking spots, plugging the tunnel where their passengers exit into the airport itself. leaving one of these planes was son goku, krillin, master roshi, yamcha, puar, bulma and her parents. roshi and his students were dressed in tuxedos, while bulma had a new, shorter haircut and was wearing her red tank top and beige short shorts combo, but this time, she was wearing a white jacket over her tank top. oolong was supposed to be with them, but he was nowhere to be found, it seemed.

 

" hey, where's the pig?" dr. briefs wondered, searching for the missing oolong while looking around the plane. 

that's where the bag opened and something fell on the floor. bulma, annoyed, grabbed the groaning oolong, who was tied up from head to toe. she then put him back in the bag and closed it, before continuing walking as if nothing happened.

"...what was that, bulma?" her father asked, stunned.

"just making sure he doesn't do anything suspicious." bulma dully answered.

"trust us, this is for the greater good!" puar whispered to the good doctor.

"what's the deal with taking this gigantic airplane thingy, anyway?" the monkey boy asked the turtle hermit. "can't we just have taken kinto'un instead?"

"it'd be way less costly, true..." roshi answered. "...but kinto'un can only carry three people. it is a cloud, after all!"

"and not everybody can ride it..." goku reasoned. "...still, I really, really wanted to pee, but I was stuck in this seat!"

"...you could've just went to the bathroom..." krillin told his best friend.

" wait, there were bathrooms inside that thing?" goku asked.

"you mean, you restrained yourself all this time?" krillin asked, dumbfounded.

"the lady said to keep the seatbelt on." goku said.

"not when you're in the air! you could've taken it off and went to the bathroom!" krillin said. "man, you baffle me, at times!"

a short while later, the gang passed the border and went towards a limousine that was rented personally by bulma...however , unknown to them, as the limousine left, the assasin known as tao pai pai was watching it leave from a nearby cafe, drinking his tea...

 

"its a good thing we took a commercial airplane instead of bulma's private jet." roshi said. "it allows us to blend in."

" why?" yamcha asked. "don't you think you're being a bit paranoid about that shen guy?"

" knowing shen, he'll surely send some of his spies to observe us, see if we're really there." roshi amswered.

"he really is that obsessed over you?" bulma asked.

"he's been waiting all of his life to have his revenge." roshi said. " and, with the crane empire hosting the budokai, he will no doubt be waiting for us. to finally beat me and end the turtle school, with the entire world to witness it. he can't ask for a better scenario than that!"

"and we'll prevent that from happening!" krillin said.

"of course!" roshi said. "he never beat me once, and we'll make sure he never will!"

"what exactly happened between you and shen?" goku asked the turtle hermit.

"ooh boy...its a really long story..." roshi said, with sadness in his voice tone.

" oh wow, look at how beautiful this city is!" panchi exclaimed, pointing at the busy streets of downtown danhua. hundreds of locals and tourists walked along the market district, visiting the various shops, food stands, boutiques and various entertainment centers. some are taking pictures in front of fountains and statues representing either deities or important people in the crane empire's history. on the streets, fit young men carried people to wherever they wanted to go in one of those iconic rickshaws. and finally, wild monkeys jumped around from roof to roof, even stealing some fruits from merchants.

"hahaha, there are monkeys everywhere!" goku exclaimed as he looked at the primates.

"yeah, that's weird..." bulma said. "did they escaped the zoo or something?"

"nay, it is a common occurrence here, in danhua." roshi answered. " there are dense forests that surrounds the city, so it is only natural that a couple of wild creatures, mostly primates and wolves, look for food here."

"you sound like you've lived here before, master." goku said.

" the shaolin temple is not far from here, that's why." krillin answered. "i was born here, after all."

"really? you were born here?" yamcha asked krillin.

"well, I never really knew where exactly I was born, since I was a baby when the temple's grand master found me..." krillin answered "...but, since I was found at the shaolin temple, I'm definitely from the region...i guess."

"...anyways, yes, I used to live here, back when I was studying under master mutaito at the shaolin temple..." master roshi answered. "...back then, danhua and mifan, the crane empire's former name, was a thriving region, with people everywhere and smiling, always willing to help each other and visitors passing by."

"...it still looks like it's the case to me." goku said as he looked at the action downtown.

" they may look happy, but rest assured, things aren't as pretty as they look." roshi said as the limousine passed in front of a particularly poor-looking ghetto. goku watched as many homeless persons covered it's streets, including an entire family, looking at others asking for any sorts of help. this made the gang have pity on them, and as the limo moved closer and closer to their destination, they all thought that, while the crane empire was beautiful from the outside, there was something seriously wrong on the inside.

the destination in question? a beautiful, sumptuous complex full of impecabbly built Chinese style temples surrounded by many perfectly sculpted statues made of bronze, each representing spirit animals and deities, as well as a massive decorative fountain. the complex was surrounded by walls, as if it was protecting itself from outsiders. the Gates, however, were open, welcoming all sorts of tourists and fighters as that Is where the tenkaichi budokai will take place.

"woah, it's huge!" goku exclaimed as everybody went out of the limo and looked around, mesmerized by the beauty in front of them.

"this is the forbidden city" roshi explained. "the tournament finals will be held at its field sports stadium."

"why is it forbidden?" goku asked.

"yeah, I always wondered why." yamcha added.

"that's because commoners are prohibited from entering it without permission, and only imperial families and high officials who are invited are allowed to." master roshi answered while the gang joined the crowd of people who were walking around looking at the various activities surrounding the tournament, like VR simulators, a hall of champions explaining the history of the tenkaichi budokai and various gift shops and food trucks.

"and I assume that commoners are allowed to enter only under special occasions?" dr. briefs wondered.

"correct!" roshi confirmed. "they are allowed in during festivals or any events organised by the emperor and his court."

"the budokai's gonna bring lots of revenue for them!" yamcha said.

"...what about troublemakers?" bulma asked. "surely, with the regime in place and a popular event like the budokai, there might be some rebels who would sneak in or something."

"that's why there are heavily armed guards everywhere..." roshi said as they looked at armed guards positioned in strategic places. "...and one of them will surely report our presence to shen..."

" our?" krillin asked. "shen only has beef with you! we got nothing to do with this!"

" uh, the red ribbon army, remember?" bulma asked the bald monk.

"...oh, right..." krillin said, scratching his head in shame.

"but do not worry, he won't send men to execute us directly!" roshi reassured everyone. "like i said, his crane school students beating us all at the budokai in front of millions would be an even more satisfying revenge for shen..." he explained, before looking at bulma and her parents. "...and I fear he's got plans for you, too!"

"who, us?" bulma and dr. briefs asked, pointing at themselves.

then, suddenly, a familiar figure appeared in front of the gang.

" my, my, we're gonna have an awesome tournament, this year!" the blonde announcer said upon landing his eyes in front of the two boys and the female scientist that made such a buzz at the previous budokai. "so nice to see you again, my friends and mrs. briefs!"

"good to see you, too!" goku responded.

"say, you're gonna compete again this year, Mrs. briefs?" the announcer asked bulma.

" no, thanks!" she answered. "that was just a one-off!"

"aw, that's a shame, cause you were better than I thought, to be honest!" the announcer said. "so, son goku and krillin, the boy wonders of martial arts! how old are you now?"

"i'm 14!" goku answered.

"13!" krillin answered.

" wow, still so young, and so good!" the announcer said before looking at master roshi. "...you must be really proud of them, Mr. roshi!"

"oh yes, I am!" roshi answered with a smile. "these boys are something special, and I can tell you they are now even better than before!"

"yeah, thanks to our training woth korin!" goku exclaimed.

" wait, KORIN? you mean, THE korin?" the announcer asked, not believing what he just heard.

" yup!" goku confirmed. "master roshi sent us to him in order to prepare ourselves for the budokai!"

"...yes, that is somewhat right."" roshi said.

"unbelievable!!" the announcer exclaimed. "TWO legends in the martial arts world trained you boys? my goodness, your challengers will crap their pants when I'll announce that!"

everybody laughed.

" hey, Mr. announcer, do you know if Jackie chun will compete?" goku asked the blond man.

"uh...nope, he hasn't put his name on the list yet." he said, checking the entry list.

"aw, man! I so wanna beat him!" goku said.

"don't worry, he'll compete!" roshi assured goku. "he's always among the last competitors to register...guy's as slow as a snail, at times!"

"yet he's really fast in the ring!" bulma said. "must be saving his energy for the fights."

suddenly, the sound of drums , flutes and shamisens surrounded the area as wavesupon waves of dancers, guards and musicians, all dressed in traditional Chinese garments, flooded the forbidden city.

"huh? what's happening?" bulma asked.

"it can only mean one thing..." the announcer said. "...the emperor is coming!"

and, fair enough, a huge carriage pushed by two massive elephants appeared, with guards stationed at every side of it, the drivers conducting the elephants and, on a platform, stood shen, tao pai pai and the triclop known as tien shinhan. the three surrounded a small glass dome that was tinted so that shouldn't see what is inside it.

"ever the show off..." master roshi murmured under his breath as his eyes laid upon his former best friend, now sworn enemy. shen himself noticed the turtle hermit, and the two would engage in an intense, distant staredown, years, nay, decades of animosity flowing through their stares as shen smiled confidently, to the point of arrogance. he then jumped off the platform he stood on, landing perfectly on his feet with the grace of his namesake bird as he cleared his throat and began speaking...

 

"HEAR YE, HEAR YE!!" the crane master shouted to attract the attention of everyone present. " on behalf of his highness, the emperor, and the great and powerful crane empire, welcome to the 21st edition of the tenkaichi budokai!"

 

" it is with great honor that the crane empire hosts this prestigious event, the greatest of all martial arts competition, in celebration of the opening of our borders after centuries of isolation!"

"weren't they forced to do it in order to host the tournament?" goku whispered to roshi.

"of course." roshi answered. "...but he'll never say that, in order to save face."

"...and here, in the crane empire.. " shen kept on talking. "...martial arts is something like our national sport! and, to show the world our knowledge and expertise in the fighting arts, nothing better than to have our finest warriors compete at the best tournament in the world! the emperor has personally chosen the three best students ever produced by the crane school, one of, if not THE, best martial arts school, in my humble opinion, to challenge the world's strongest fighters!"

"humble, my ass..." bulma whispered.

"i do admit, there is a lot of arrogance in this shen fellow..." dr. briefs said.

"i wonder who these three fighters are." goku wondered out loud.

"up first, the perfect example of the world class talent our crane school produces..." shen said as the cold, emotionless man known as tao pai pai descended from the carriage's stairs. "...he holds many of the crane school training program's records, has won multiple tournaments across the globe, has given exemplary service for his country and has never, ever Been beaten! he's making a "killing" so to speak!" he said as he giggled. " it is with pride and honor that I present to you all my brother, general tao pai pai!!"

"n..no way!" roshi exclaimed silently.

" you know him, master?" goku asked.

"yes..." roshi said, with worry on his face. "...he's not an ordinary fighter, he's a professional killer!"

" what??" almost everybody shouted.

"that despicable bastard...he is actually serious about putting an end to the turtle school!" roshi said in anger, stunned that shen is willing to go that far to have his revenge!

"don't worry, we'll beat em!" goku said.

"are you nuts, goku?! didn't you listen to what he just said?" bulma asked. "that guy kills people!"

"...he must be strong, then!" goku said with an excited look, as if he was lusting for a fight. everybody was shocked at what goku just said. they knew that goku loves challenges, but this was just suicidal! he's not gonna fight a killer, isn't he?

" the second fighter chosen by the emperor..." shen continued. "...is, quite possibly, the brightest prospect the crane school has ever produced, and that's saying something!" he said as tien shinhan descended from the stairs. "he has won many youth tournaments,and became the youngest ever winner of the eagleland open at only 19 years old! ladies and gentlemen, I present you: the future of martial arts, tien shinhan!!"

tien shinhan simply stood still as the gathering of fighters applauded him.

"only 19? and he's already that good?" bulma's mother asked.

"yeah, but goku and krillin are younger, and they're already really good!" dr. briefs said.

"geez, what's the deal with them being such silent, uptight jerks?" yamcha said,not liking the crane fighters's attitudes.

"he's got three eyes?" bulma asked, noticing time's third eye on his forehead.

"he looks strong, too." goku said upon looking at the triclop.

" the eagleland open is considered the second best tournament after the budokai. him winning it definitely means he's no chump!" krillin said.

"he has a really powerful aura..." roshi said, sensing tien's ki. "...with a hint of...uncertainty? and worry? how intriguing..."

"and last, but certainly not least..." shen said with gusto. "...this third fighter was hard to choose. the emperor and his court, of which I and the rest of the crane school is part of, debated for hours on who we are gonna send as our third fighter. after much consideration, we have agreed that this person was the perfect candidate to join general tao and tien shinhan in our bid to win the budokai! so, without further ado, let's bring forth the third and final fighter personally chosen by the emperor!"

as soon as those words were spoken, the glass dome in the middle of the platform opened, revealing a throne were a small child with pale skin and red dots on his cheeks was sitting on it. as he stood up, the crowd were stunned to see that the third fighter was a child. he was wearing traditional imperial garments,and he slowly descended down the stairs, guards surrounding him.

"ladies and gentlemen, please salute...the emperor of mifan, chaotzu the first!!" shen said as he, tien shinhan, tao pai pai, the dancers and guards bowed down in front of the child emperor.

" what? the emperor is competing??" the announcer said, surprised.

" emperor? but he's only a child!" bulma said."

"wut? he's almost younger than us!" both goku and krillin said at the same time.

" so that's what that commander red guy meant by child emperor..." both roshi and yamcha thought, remembering the late commander red's mention. roshi also felt a unique and powerful aura around the emperor chaotzu. he's not as inoffensive as he looks...

the people stood up, with chaotzu and tien smiling at each other as both of them, tap pai pai and shen moved to the registration table.

"a child emperor...in this day and age..." dr. briefs was fascinated, he never thought that a concept from a bygone age would still exist in modern times.

" oh, poor little thing! having the weight of an entire nation on his little shoulders!" panchi said, having pity for chaotzu.

" do not worry, my lady, it's not as hard as you'd think!" a childlike voice told bulma's mother in her head, creeping her out. is she becoming crazy?

"goku, krillin, we're gonna have a hard tine against these people..." roshi said.

"even the kid emperor?" krillin said.

"don't underestimate him, krillin..." goku said. "...something about him seems...off."

"you are correct, goku." roshi told the monkey boy. "emperor chaotzu may not look like it, but he's something special...we have to be at our absolute best if we wanna beat them!"

"right!" both goku and krillin said at the same time, striking a confident pose.

"i can't wait to wipe their arrogant "stoic men" looks from their faces!" yamcha said, cracking his fists.

"...be careful, guys... I have a bad feeling about this..." bulma said.

after a minute or two, all three crane fighters have been registered, including emperor chaotzu. as they made their way to the indoor arenas for the preliminaries, shen turned around to finish his speech.

"we hope you will have a wonderful tournament!" shen said. "we at the crane empire have put all of our efforts into making this the greatest martial arts tournament to ever have been organised! and, I gotta admit, as prime minister of mifan and head master of the crane school, it'd be extremely exciting to have one of our three fighters win OUR tenkaichi budokai, Hua Hua Hua!" he laughed with arrogance, making roshi angry. "anyways, to all the other fighters out there..." he then began another staredown against his eternal rival. this time, tien, tao pai pai and emperor chaotzu joined in the staredown. goku, krillin and yamcha too joined in on the staredown. the tension was really high, and it looked as if it was ready to blow out.

 

"...i wish you all good luck!" shen said, giving a sinister grin to the turtle school representants. behind them, two persons wearing traditional grabs lifted heavy sticks, ready to strike two gongs.

 

"now...LET THE 21ST TENKAICHI BUDOKAI...BEGIN!!"

the gongs were hit, signaling the beginning of the tournament.

END OF CHAPTER.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> and now, it's time for the tournament!
> 
> is it just me, or I imagine master shen having the voice of shang tsung from the mortal kombat movie?
> 
> and yeah, as you probably have guessed from now, the crane empire is basically China.
> 
> also, if you are a hardcore dragon ball fan, you might have guessed that the setup for this arc is based on the third dragon ball movie, makafushigi adventure, which is a retelling of the tenshinhan and tao pai pai arc.
> 
>  
> 
> let me know what you think of this story or the recent chapters in the comments!
> 
> thank you for reading and giving your feedback! as usual, I really appreciate it!


	28. The tournament begins...again!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the tournament has finally started! the gang meets new and old challengers alike in the preliminaries, and they get to know a sympathetic and strong native chief and his son. as yamcha and krillin show their massive improvements and the crane school fighters show what they're made of, goku goes head to head with an unexpectedly tough challenger coming back from retirement!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Following is not for profit. it is strictly a fan work meant for personal amusement. Dragon ball, dragon ball z and dragon ball super is property of Akira toriyama, toyotaro, shueisha, Toei animation and shonen jump. please support the official release.
> 
> Some ideas from this fanfic are taken from Lawrence Simpson, AKA: Masakox of teamfourstar fame. check out his what-ifs, they're pretty interesting!

on the northwest of the forbidden city stood the indoor sports gymnasium, the size of which can be compared to an ice hockey arena. there was no ice inside, though, only hardwood covered by three circular lei tai platforms, where the preliminary fights of the tenkaichi budokai will take place. near the rings, goku, krillin and yamcha were stretching their limbs, warming up for their matchups.

" ah, it feels good, wearing the gi again!" goku exclaimed as he was happy to wear his signature fighting outfit again.

"yeah, it's been a while..." krillin said as he put on his. "...and it still fits!"

"my training definitely paid off!" yamcha said as he admired himself in his new turtle school gi. "I look better than ever!"

bulma only smiled in answer to what his boyfriend said...even then, that was just to be polite.

"it's a shame you're not competing this year, dear!" bulma's mom said upon looking at the ring.

"...i gotta admit...it was fun." bulma said, reflecting on her entire adventure in the ring last tournament.

"see? I knew you'd like martial arts, bulma!" goku said upon hearing what his purple-haired friend said.

"...you didn't register me again, did ya?" bulma asked the monkey boy.

"nah, not this time!" goku assured her.

"and there better be no next time!" bulma warned him.

" hey, where's master roshi?" puar asked, looking everywhere for the turtle hermit.

"no way, he's still in the bathroom?" bulma said, not believing it was taking that long for the old man to hurry up.

"i never knew a human being could excrete for so long!" Dr. briefs said.

"DAD!!" bulma said, embarrased.

"Honey, how dare you say something like that!" panchi said, embarrassed at her husband's words.

suddenly, somebody tapped goku's shoulder lightly, prompting the monkey boy to turn around, only to come face to face with none other than jacky chun, who made a peace sign.

"Hey, old man!" goku exclaimed in surprise, happy to know that the man he lost the finals of the last budokai to was finally competing. " you finally came!"

"heh heh, good to see you too, youngsters!" Jacky chun responded. "it's been a long time!"

"eager to defend your title?" yamcha asked the slick-back-haired elderly gentleman.

"hohoho, winning the last budokai brought me back 30 years of my prime !" he answered, prompting a laugh from everyone. "I actually talked to muten roshi on the way here...is it true that he sent you to korin?" he asked goku and krillin.

" yup!" goku answered enthusiastically. "and now I'm stronger than before! this time, I'll beat you!" he boasted to the old man.

"hohoho, I can't wait to see you try!" Jacky chun challenged the monkey boy...while sweating hard in his head!

chun then looked at the group that contained tao pai pai, tien shinhan, master shen and emperor chaotzu. all 4 of them were close to the wall, observing the mass of fighters in front of them.

"so they did come..." Jacky chun said upon looking at them.

"you know that shen guy and the crane school fighters?" bulma asked the old man.

"roshi told me about them..." chun answered. "...a bunch of ruthless bastards, he said. they're very strong, though, especially tao pai pai...didn't know the emperor himself was competing, though."

"yeah, that seems so weird! why is he out there in the open like that? a well hidden rebel or something could snipe him!" yamcha said.

" indeed, it is interesting..." chun said, before turning his eyes towards the bald, three-eyed young man known as tien shinhan. "...that's the three-eyed kid who won the eagleland open, right?"

"yeah, it's him!" krillin confirmed. "how does he have three eyes?" he asked.

" maybe he was born with it, like how I was born with a tail?" goku wondered.

" hmm, maybe I could do a research on him..." Dr. briefs said, fascinated by the young man's third eye on his forehead.

"speaking of which, how come you didn't do any research on goku's tail, Dad?" bulma asked her father.

roshi, however, was not listening to anything, as he was focusing hard on tien shinhan. he found him intriguing, due to the strange aura he sensed around the triclop. it had a hint of worry, sadness and incomprehension... just like he did to the Hindu wanderer nam, he used telepathy to enter the young man's mind, hoping to find the answer behind the stoic facade of tien...

 

tien couldn't believe what he just saw.

 

there, in front of him, stood his master, the crane hermit Shen, and his senpai, tao pai pai, looking down on the bloodied and bruised students and master of the ryukyu karate school, broken, beaten and some of them even caughing blood from their mouths. the walls and small statues of the ryukyu karate school were stained with the blood that its occupant shed during the fierce battle against their invading challengers from the crane school.

"y...you...chintok...bastards!" the ryukyu karate master said as he tried his hardest to fight the pain he was in and get up. "w...what...have we...done to you...?"

shen then grabbed the master's collar, and looked at him dead in the eyes with a look that can only be described as pure hatred.

"what have you done? HOW DARE YOU ASK THIS QUESTION!!" he asked back, offended by what he just Said. "you know damn well what you Riben scumbags did to our people!"

"w...what th-AARRGH!!" shen slammed the karate master's face on the floor before he could even finish his sentence. the master's nose was broken, blood was flowing from his nostrils.

"you Riben monsters have preyed on our people when it was weak and fragile! raping, killing and burning everything that was even remotely mifan!"

tien couldn't believe what master shen was doing! he and tao pai pai were beating down on innocent nihon men for the tianjin massacre, an event that happened more than 60 years ago, while these men had nothing to do with it! this made no sense!

"but now...we rose from the ashes, and have become the strongest nation on earth!" shen boasted. "let the destruction of Nihon's greatest martial arts school be a warning to your miserable nation! that, once the crane empire takes over the world, we will come to massacre YOU!!"

and then, shen and tao pai pai continued beating down on the already defenseless karatekas, with tien shinhan witnessing it.

he has the power to do something.

to make them stop.

to save those innocent karate fighters.

...but he knew that, if he did something, he would end up like those defenseless fighters.

shen was his master. and tao pai pai his senpai.

he couldn't do a thing....

so here he stood, paralysed by fear as he watched his master and senpai beat the karate fighters to a bloody pulp, shen enjoying every second of it.

once they were done, both shen and tao pai pai turned around and left the building, as if nothing happened!

tien shinhan couldn't believe this! they committed an atrocious act of domestic assault, and they just shrugs it off like it was normal!

however, nothing would prepare him for what his master ordered him to do.

"...burn it down, tien..."

that's where he wanted to blast his master to bits and run...but he knew he was no match for him and especially tao pai pai. after all, he was just a rookie.

and so, as he lifted his arm and concentrated all of his ki into his palm, he looked at the bloodied karate master, who looked as if he was begging for mercy.

then, with sadness and sorrow in his face, tien communicated one Last phrase to the dying karate master via telepathy.

" I'm sorry...may Buddha have mercy on your soul..."

he then fired hi ki blast, the ryukyu karate dojo engulfed in infernal heat...

 

roshi took a huge step back when he left tien's mind, stupefied and disgusted at what tien had to endure. never in his whole life he would've thought that the man he used to call his best friend would turn into such a vindictive, sadistic monster.

"are you ok, old man?" goku asked jacky chun.

"y-yeah, I'm alright, I was just in the clouds, that's all!" chun said, scratching his head.

tien looked at Jacky chun, wondering why he was acting so weirdly.

"tien, the tournament will begin soon!" master shen told the young triclop. as he followed tao pai pai and emperor chaotzu to the rings, shen looked at the turtle school group, giving particular attention to the man known as Jacky chun...

 

meanwhile, the gang was making their way to the ring when somebody bumped into goku from nowhere. as both goku and the stranger got up, goku wondered who bodychecked him.

as he stood up, the gang grew curious as the person that bumped goku turned out to be a small native American child, apparently from a iroquois tribe judging by his getup. his long black hair was braided, his innocent eyes sporting the same color. his chubby stomach popped out of his sleeveless beige shirt, and his matching pants was colored brown around the pelvis area. after he accidentally bumped goku, the native boy adjusted his tribe's headband on his forehead and looked at the gang in confusion, before he realised what he had done after seeing goku caress his head in pain.

"oh no, I'm so sorry!" the native boy exclaimed, bowing down on his knees in apology. "I beg you to forgive me!"

"nah, it's alright, I received worse shots on my head!" goku said as he got up. "...why are you on your knees?"

"huh? why, I just hit you!" the native boy said, getting up. "when you've done something bad, you must beg for forgiveness!"

"calm down, young one, there's nothing worth begging for forgiveness here. you just bumped into him, that's all!" Jacky chun told the young iroquois.

"UPA!" shouted a booming voice from the crowd, with the rest of the fighters making way for a large, imposing iroquois warrior who was wearing an adult-sized version of the native child. he was built like a brickhouse, and his face was square-shaped and had some scars, meaning he has seen his fair share of fighting.

"I'm right here, father!!" upa shouted as his father went towards him.

"there you are, upa!" said the large native man as he grabbed the young iroquois in his arms. "I told you to not run away like that!"

"im sorry, father, i was so happy to finally come to the budokai!" upa said.

"yes yes, but keep yourself calm, okay?" the iroquois warrior told his son, before facing the gang. "I'm deeply sorry! this is our first time here, and my son's a big fan of martial arts!"

" haha, it's alright! youngsters are hard to contain!" Jacky chun said.

"who are you guys?" goku asked the iroquois.

"i am bora, chief of the karinga tribe." the tall, muscular man presented himself. "and this is my son, upa"

"Hi!" upa said, waving at the gang.

" wow, you guys are real natives of eagleland!" bulma's mom said. "I've only seen you on documentaries! you're much bigger in reality than on TV!"

"mom!" bulma exclaimed, embarrassed.

"nah, it's alright, miss, your mother didn't say anything bad." the tall iroquois warrior told bulma. "in fact, its great that you've seen the documentaries on us! it means you're aware of the problems the first nations face."

"what kind of problems?" goku asked, curious.

"its a really long list, let me tell ya!" upa said.

"alas, now is not the time...we got a tournament to win!" bora told the gang.

" oh, you're competing?" bulma asked.

"yes." bora confirmed. "and I wish you all good luck, my fellow warriors!"

"are you strong?" goku asked.

" you kidding me? father is the strongest!" upa boasted, making his father laugh.

" woah, really?" goku was surprised at this declaration. "then I can't wait to face you, chief bora!"

"i saw you at the last budokai on TV." bora told the monkey boy. "you, the old man and the bald child are pretty strong indeed! it would be a good challenge! see you soon!" he said as he and his son moved towards the rings, waving good bye to the gang.

"ATTENTION ALL FIGHTERS!!" a tournament organiser shouted in a microphone. " IT IS TIME TO PROCEED WITH THE DRAW FOR THE PRELIMINARY ROUNDS! PLEASE GATHER AROUND THE CENTRAL RING!"

as everybody in the gymnasium gathered around the central ring, it was only then that the gang realised one thing: there were a hell of a lot more fighters than at the last budokai! last time out, there were more than 50-60. this time, however, it wouldn't be too big of a stretch to say that there were almost 200 fighters!

"Before we proceed to the draw, we have an important announcement to make..." the tournament organiser told everybody present. "...first of all, welcome to the 21st tenkaichi budokai! we hope that each and everyone of you will have a good time competing, and that you all respect each other!"

"now, onto the message itself...this year, the 21st tenkaichi budokai has the highest ever amount of entries in the entire tournament's history, with the total number being an astounding 182 fighters!"

everybody clapped to this announcement.

" and, due to the increasing number of entries, as well as to avoid direct competition with events like the world cup and the olympics, the tenkaichi budokai will not only move dates from july to early June, but it will also be organised every 4 years instead of every 2 years!"

"ouch! that is long!" krillin said in reaction.

" hey, that means I'll have more time to train!" goku said, happy at this announcement.

"and now, without further ado, let's proceed to the draw!" the announcer said as a Stewart brought forth a rolling table with a big bowl covered in a blanket, with a hole on top so as to fit a hand in it. everybody sweated in anticipation and nervousness as the announcer plunged his arm into the bowl containing the names of each and every contestants. the only persons who weren't showing any nervousness were the crane school fighters and the emperor, as they kept their poker face on.

"first up..." the announcer took out his arm from the bowl and read the small paper in his fingers. "...it is yamcha..."

yamcha shook his fists in excitement, with the gang being happy for him.

"...against boktai sriracha!" said the announcer as a small, lean Asian kickboxer climbed up the ring at the same time as the former desert bandit. the two bowed to each other and listened to the referees instructions before taking their stances

" hmm, yamcha's stance has changed..." goku thought as he analysed his friend's positioning.

"ready...FIGHT!!"

 

and the fight didn't even last 5 seconds, as boktai went for a knee strike, but yamcha immediately counters with a backfist to the kickboxer's face, sending him stumbling out of the ring!

as soon as the fight was over and his victory was confirmed, yamcha jumped out of the ring and rejoined the gang, who all congratulated him.

"you definitely improved!" goku told him. "your stance is now tight and compact, leaving almost no openings!"

"yeah, I had to modify it." yamcha admitted. "my wolf fang fist stance was too obvious, too wide. now, thanks to what master roshi taught me, I learned to be a better defensive fighter!"

"that's good, yamcha!" bulma told her boyfriend. " you're gonna go far this year, I feel it!"

"you must not get feisty yet, young wolf!" the muscular iroquois chief known as bora said, as he and his son upa joined the gang near the ring. "it is only the preliminaries, and, while I don't wanna devalue the other fighters here, I feel like they aren't quite the formidable opponents we'll face in the latter stages."

"yeah, he's right, ya gotta keep your heads cool!" Jacky chun said.

"up next... bora karinga..."

"father, it's gonna be your turn!" upa exclaimed the moment he heard his dad's name.

"good luck, Mr. bora!" goku said to the hulking iroquois as he jumped into the ring to face his opponent, a takewondo master by the name of seol leong tang.

"i know your type! all strength, no speed!" the takewondo master told the iroquois chief...who didn't even listen to him, he was too busy chanting a prayer to the great manitou!

"grr, show me some respect, ya jerk!" leong tang said, fuming, taking his fighting stance.

" ready...FIGHT!!"

"HUNTING HAWK!!" leong tang struck first with a jumping kick, followed by an aerial spinning roundhouse kick...that bora surprisingly avoids eyes closed, showing deceptive agility and reflexes for a man his size...and he was still praying! leong tang then finished with an axe kick, but bora catches his leg!

"woah! dude's legit!" bulma said, joining the gang in their admiration of bora's unexpected reflexes.

"show em what you got, father!" upa shouted.

"yessir!!" bora responded with a smile as he put an iron grip on the surprised taekwondo master's leg, hurting his shin bone before jumping in the air at an incredible height as he began taking leong tang for a spin, literraly, winding up his right arm furiously, leong tang spinning upside down like a windmill. bora violently slammed him down right on his back and neck!

"holy smokes!!" Jacky chun said as the gang was mesmerized by the sheer awesomeness of that move.

"YEAH!! THE KARINGA TYPHOON!!" upa shouted as his father stood victorious, leong tang in way too deep hurting to answer the 10 count. bora then jumped out of the ring and was congratulated by the gang and his son.

"woah, you are so strong!" goku said in admiration. "the way you dodged and caught his leg...all with your eyes closed! it was so cool!"

"Yeah, what kind of martial art Is that? wrestling?" krillin asked.

"these are ancient fighting arts transmitted through generations of karinga warriors." bora explained. "I'll gladly tell you about it after we're done here."

" Yeah, there are many strong opponents still to come..." Jacky chun said while looking at the crane school fighters.

 

"up next...krillin..."

krillin made his final stretch before entering the ring, with goku pating him on the shoulder and the gang cheering for him.

"...against giant rozhmov!" the announcer said as the giant that Jacky chun beat at the last torunament prelims returned, and he was laughing when he saw krillin greeting him.

"well, would you look at that! a tiny baby octopus!" rozhmov taunted.

"ready when you are!" krillin said as he took his fighting stance.

" oh my, krillin is in deep trouble!" bulma's mom said, scared by the giant.

"nah, he's gonna be alright, mom." bulma assured her with confidence.

"Yeah, the giant's not very good. proof: I beat him without laying a finger on him!" Jacky chun said.

"WANNA GET CRUSHED LIKE A BUG?!?" the giant shouted as he was gonna crush krillin with his massive hand...but krillin catches his index finger and used all of his strength to throw him out of the ring, tearing down the wall along the way, to the surprise of the crowd. the giant woke up all dizzy, wondering what just happened, with krillin giving a peace sign.

"attaboy, krillin!!" goku and bulma shouted I victory as the bald monk rejoined them "you're way better than before! no question about it!" goku told his best friend.

"of course! we drank the holy water, remember?" krillin asked the monkey boy.

while yamcha and Jacky chun were sweating following confirmation of their biggest worries, the crane master was stunned when he heard that the two turtle school kids drank "holy water"...

"n...no way! they don't mean THAT holy water, right?" shen said in his head.

"it appears that the two younglings have been trained by the great cat sage, too." emperor chaotzu telepathically said to shen.

"grr, that bastard roshi planned everything, I'm sure of it!" shen said in his head.

"whether they went under roshi's recommendation or not, they showed that we must not underestimate them." tien shinhan told everyone telepathically. "the kids are very strong. it's no wonder the red ribbon were defeated by them."

"...we'll show them who are the strongest soon enough, holy water or not!" Tao pai pai said telepathically.

"next up, general tao pai pai..." as soon as he heard his name, the assassin jumped effortlessly into the ring, staring down his opponent "...against sambo wrestler biff stroganoff!"

in front of him stood a tall, well built man wearing shorts and the top of a blue gi with a black belt. he had short brown hair cut in a military style, and he had almond-shape eyes.

"so that's the so called killer, huh?" goku asked.

" Yeah..." yamcha confirmed, cold sweat dropping from his head.

" why..." bulma asked. just seeing this ice cold man and the void in his stare gave her shivers down her spine...and not the good kind! "...why did they allowed him to compete? killing is illegal!" she said in panic.

"do not fear!" master shen exclaimed. "while my brother do have a certain..."reputation", he is fully aware that killing is forbidden in this tournament, and we told him to use non-lethal martial arts!"

"that's surprising, coming from bloodthirsty maniacs like you!" yamcha exclaimed.

" Yeah, we're gonna beat you and your cronies!" krillin boasted.

"you call the emperor a crony?" tien shinhan said in offense to what krillin just said, before emperor chaotzu put his arm in front of him, stopping the triclop.

" let them be, tien..." the emperor told his bodyguard. "...we'll let our crane style kung fu do the talking."

"ready...FIGHT!!"

the sambo wrestler went for a shoot takedown, which tao pai pai jumps over...only to land right on stroganoff's back with a double foot stomp, doing a peace sign at the same time!! stroganoff cried in pain as he couldn't answer the ten count.

"KO...winner: tao pai pai!"

" hey, he broke his back!! what the hell, refs!!" bulma screamed.

" he has no right to hurt somebody like that!" goku exclaimed, furious at this blatant attempt to injure the opponent! he looked at the ruthless snake in front of him. he was powerful, and had that heartless aura around him... it made the monkey boy sick, knowing that this man, this "killer", took pleasure in hurting others.

as the medics arrived to check on stroganoff's back, tao pai pai looked at his fallen opponent, who was touching his back in pain.

" you should disqualify him!" krillin shouted at the referees.

" he didn't kill anyone, am I right?" shen asked both the gang and the refs.

"well, it's true that he could've attacked stroganoff with the intent of injuring him..." the referee said.

"...i landed awkwardly." two pai pai said.

" WHAT?!?" the gang couldn't believe what the assassin was saying.

"i thought my opponent had enough momentum to slide to the other side of the ring...thats why I only jumped vertically." tao explained.

" that's bullshit!" yamcha exclaimed.

"don't listen to these fools..." shen told the ref. "they have a profound dislike of the crane school. surely, you won't be influenced by a biased view, right?"

while the gang and shen were arguing with the refs, tao pai pai looked at stroganoff, who was being carried on his feet by the medics. then, two acupuncture needles slid out of two's sleeve, and the assassin threw them directly at stroganoff's vertebrae, the needles stinging like a bee's stinger as stroganoff again touched his back...only to feel no pain anymore.

"h...hey, my back's alright! it's a miracle!!" stroganoff said, delighted that he could move again!

the gang, unaware of what tao pai pai just did, were left speechless.

"see? it was an accident, nothing more, nothing less!" the crane hermit told the ref, who was equally speechless. "now please proceed to the next match!" he order the announcer.

"uh o-ok..." the announcer nervously drew two other names from the bowl. "...up next is the sumo grand champion bentoryu..."

a fat sumo wrestler climbed up the ring, spreading salt in the air and stomping on the mat.

"...against tien shinhan of the crane school!"

" ah, excellent!" said a jubilant shen before looking at the gang with a sly smile on his face. "your turtle school shenanigans are all fancy and everything, but it's now time for tien to show you what real martial arts are! who knows, maybe by watching our fighters going at it, you'll find a way to beat us...that is, if you actually think you can beat us with those so called "martial arts" of yours! HUA HUA HUA!!"

"yeah, we're so scared of that fancy crane style stuff!" krillin taunted, imitating the crane pose from the karate kid.

" HA! the crane style that tien will demonstrate is nothing like that outrageous fake stuff from that awful movie!" shen told krillin.

" hey, why don't you just shut up and fight, assholes?" yamcha said, giving the finger to the crane school fighters.

" we're fighting, it's you who are wasting your breath on worthless trash talk!" emperor chaotzu said with complete authority. "and the same goes to you, master shen!" he told the crane hermit.

" yes, my apologies, my Lord..." shen said begrudgingly in front of the giggling turtle school gang as tien shinhan took off his robe and entered the ring to face the sumo champion, bentoryu. he then took his stance, which was the traditional crane style kung fu stance: body inclined backwards in a reverse lunge, the right arm above the head and the left arm stretched forward, the hands forming the wings of a crane.

"ready...FIGHT!!"

as soon as the signal was given, bentoryu charged, the ground shaking at every step the sumotori took. tien, however, was fully concentrated, and his vision was filled with a sort of X-ray vision showcasing the various pressure points of the body, as seen in acupuncture books. that's the true power of his third eye, as it allows to see where he is supposed to hit in order to inflict maximum damage.

in a flash, he delivered a series of punches so fast that the audience and bentoryu only saw one punch. bentoryu stood still, while tien turned around and left the ring as the sumo fell down in great pain, not answering the ten count.

"w...what just happened?" dr. briefs wondered out loud.

"i only saw one punch...yet it looks like the sumo guy received a thousand of them!" bulma said.

"correction: three punches and four kicks!" krillin told the purple-haired scientist, to her surprise.

" what?? you really saw everything?" bulma's mom asked the gang.

" yeah, he's blazing fast!" yamcha said, mesmerized by the speed of the triclop.

"and accurate, too!" Jacky chun said. "he hit the sumotori in the solar plexus, both shoulder seams, lower gumline, left kidney and both quadricep tendons!"

"...wait, those are acupuncture terms!" bulma realised.

" indeed!" Jacky chun responded. "those are some of the many pressure points of the body. martial artists who uses styles similar to the crane style study acupuncture intensely, in order to strike an opponent where it hurts...even kill."

"sheesh..." Dr.. briefs said when Jacky chun told that last part of his sentence.

"and pressure points can also heal, like what acupuncturists do." krillin said.

"man, those crane school guys are so strong! I can't wait to face them!" goku joyfully exclaimed.

"...he really doesn't care about the fact that they can kill him..." the gang all thought in unison.

 

"up next, we will have...son goku..."

"alright, it's my turn!" the monkey boy said as he climbed up the ring.

" hey, the emperor hasn't fought yet..." bulma realised.

"the emperor gets an automatic bye to the quater-finals..." Jacky chun explained. "...its HIS tenkaichi budokai, after all!"

then, a tall, dark-skinned Asian man climbed up the ring. he had an afro of sorts, a dot on his forehead, a well-trimmed beard and he was wearing formal robes belonging to a Thai king. his presence made everyone talk, much to the confusion of bulma and her family.

"h...hey, isn't that king tchapa?" an anthromorphic leopard asked his friend the bear.

" oh my god, it is!" the bear said,not believing what he was seeing.

"w..who is this guy? krillin asked in confusion.

" he must be well known, given that evedybody is talking about him. "bulma remarked.

" that's king tchapa!" yamcha exclaimed.

" who?" krillin asked.

"chayan phichai phassakorn, also known as tchapa, king of Siam!" Jacky chun said. "he was a formidable fighter back in the day! he gave me a hard time everytime we fought in tournaments!"

"he even won the 18th tenkaichi budokai!" yamcha said.

"heh, that's because I wasn't competing!" chun exclaimed.

"...but why is he competing? didn't he retire after being crowned king and after he had kids?" yamcha asked.

meanwhile, in the ring, goku stretched his limbs in preparation for his fight. tchapa was giggling upon seeing the nonchalance of his young opponent. it's as if he didn't even knew who he was!

it reminded him of his younger self.

"how nostalgic!" he said as he saluted goku. "there is a strong aura emitting from you, child...no wonder you have beaten my son!"

"uh...do I know you?" goku asked the king.

" no, but you know my son..." tchapa answered. "...you beat him at the last tenkaichi budokai."

"wait, that pamput guy?" goku asked. "no offense, but your son was not that strong. hope you're better than him!"

"wait, pamput is king tchapa's son??" bulma was surprised.

" yeah, and the godlike muay Thai skills he has was inherited from his dad." Jacky chun explained. " in some ways, pamput had the potential to be even better than his father...that is, until he faced goku!"

"heh heh, oh, child, you will soon learn..." the king of Siam told goku as he did the traditional muay Thai pre-fight ritual. "...that the father is from a different cloth than the son!"

"...okay...but why are you here?" goku asked. "is it because I beat your son?"

"ever since I watched my son fall by your hand at the last budokai on TV..." tchapa began explaining."...upon seeing you fight your way to the finals, I felt a...sensation...that I haven't felt in a long time. the feeling of adrenaline rushing through my veins..."

"...the shivers down your spine, that endless hunger to face a new challenge, that drive to surpass one's own limits, the urge to fight strong opponents." goku completed the king's phrase, prompting him to smile.

"...hahahahaha!" king tchapa suddenly laughed, to the confusion of everyone except Jacky chun and master shen. "you, child, are made of the same cloth as me! this will be a grandiose duel!" he exclaimed as he took the muay Thai fighting stance.

“haha, this is gonna be exciting!” goku said, smiling as he took his stance.

The tension in the air was palpable. The people felt that this is gonna be a barnstormer of a fight. While everybody was waiting with anticipation, the crane school fighters observed the monkey boy with curiosity.

“tchapa is a former champion…this will be an interesting test for roshi's pupil.” Shen said in his head.

“ he was retired for a while…” tien telepathically said.

“even then, he is still a formidable fighter…” shen responded. What people don’t know, however, is that, among all the turtle school fighters, something about goku…makes shen afraid of him!

“ready…FIGHT!!”

goku pounced first, delivering fast punches and kicks and moving around the old king. he was going for a hit-and-run approach, as his fight with pamput made the monkey boy realise that he should stay as far away from any inside fighting against a muay Thai fighter.

...howeber, king tchapa has dealt with hit-and-run tactics his whole fighting career, and he used his considerable experience to cut goku dead in his tracks every time he tried to attack him from behind. when he caught goku behind him again, tchapa tried an elbow strike...only to hit thin air as goku disappeared with an afterimage strike, hitting the former budokai champion with a superman punch that rocked king tchapa, who tumbled a few steps back, grabbing his jaw as he looked at his young opponent with surprise, to the awe of the crowd.

a few seconds of stalemate followed as ki g tchapa regained his senses. there was blood coming from his mouth, which shocked the king of siam. this little boy managed to spill the blood of the royal family! and he looked like he was monkeying around like a boy at a schoolyard!

" no way...he made him bleed!" yamcha said.

"now, he's gonna get serious..." Jacky chun thought.

tchapa took a deep breath, then smiled as he looked at the monkey boy.

"impressive...a child that already fights like a king!" tchapa complemented goku.

"...is that supposed to be a good thing?" the monkey boy asked.

"you kidding? Freaking king tchapa just told you you are awesome!" yamcha exclaimed.

" indeed, you surprised me in more ways that I imagined!" the king of Siam said. " not many warriors have managed to spill the blood of the royal family, be it on the battlefield or in the ring. and those who did..." he said as he took a special aggressive stance. "...has suffered great consequences!"

goku, sensing that his opponent was getting serious, smiled in anticipation. "alright then...hit me with your best shot!" he said as he took his fighting stance again.

tchapa smiled sinisterly, then blasted towards goku with a spinning thrust kick, but goku does an afterimage strike, then another, then another...amidst the barrage of afterimages, king tchapa slowed down and concentrated...and rocks goku with a surprise elbow strike right on his nose!

"amazing! he beat the afterimage strike!" krillin said, stupefied.

"i told you, he is good!" Jackie chun exclaimed.

goku spun around, completely stunned by this sudden elbow strike!

"I GOTCHA!!" tchapa shouted as he delivered a powerful knee strike right on goku's neck! as it snapped back, tchapa took this opportunity to slam a vicious elbow on goku's forehead, then another knee strike in his gut. he then crouched, closing his fist as he is looking to finish the fight!

"HURRICANE UPPER!!" the king of Siam shouted as he knocked goku in the air with a powerful uppercut, creating gusts of wind.

" GOKU!!" all of his friends shouted, thinking that goku couldn't recover from that vicious assault.

as goku fell down from the ceiling, tchapa was about to finish goku in the same way that his son pamput tried to: with an upward vertical kick to his stomach...however, just as he was about to hit the monkey boy...

"HAAA!!" goku shouted as he blasted all the breath contained in his mouth to stop his fall right in front of tchapa's foot, to the king's surprise. he then unexpectedly tickled the king's foot, prompting him to lose his balance as he hopped on one foot, laughing embarrassingly at the tickling. and then, goku appeared right in front of him, lunging at him.

"ROCK..."

his punch was blocked by king tchapa's fist.

"...SCISSORS..."

goku then looked the king's eyes.

"...PAPER!!" he shouted as he delivered a powerful palm strike that sent the king of Siam flying, landing near the edge of the ring.

another stalemate ensued, the crowd applauding and cheering for the two fighters who are putting one he'll of a show.

"oof, I can't even breath! it's so intense!" bulma's mom exclaimed.

" it's incredible! goku is able to match king tchapa's pace!" yamcha exclaimed.

"KICK HIS ASS, GOKU!!" oolong shouted.

"wait, oolong?" bulma just realised that the pig managed to get himself free from her bag. "how the hell did you-"

"i got him out of the bag." puar admitted.

"what the fuck, you crazy bitch?! you wanted to suffocate me?? I was dying in there!" oolong exclaimed in anger.

"WHO'S THE CRAZY BITCH, YOU FUCKING PIG?!?" bulma a said as she picked a fight with oolong.

back in the ring, king tchapa got up and started to breath a little heavier now. goku was breathing shallower, too. those knee strikes he received in his gut hurt like hell.

"n...not bad!" goku said as he caressed his belly. "you're pretty strong!"

"hrrgh, you..." king tchapa was starting to be pissed off. how Dare this kid embarrass him by tickling his foot? "...you took my elbow on your forehead, and you're not even bleeding!"

"heh, I received worse shots on my head!" goku taunted.

"grr, don't get cocky, you haven't seen my full strength yet!" tchapa warned the monkey boy as lightning started to appear on his fists, catching goku off guard.

" oh no, he's not gonna do..." Jacky chun knew what was coming!

" the tiger is enraged!" upa exclaimed

"Wha? lightning is forming on his hands!" bulma said.

"interesting...let's see how he gets out of that one!" the crane hermit said as he smiled.

"TIGER SHOT!!" king tchapa shouted as he trusted both fists forward, blasting all of his ki into one huge fireball heading straight towards goku!

"DODGE!!" everyome of goku's friedns shouted as the monley boy dodged the blast at the last minute, breathing a sigh of relief...only to get surprised by another tiger shot!

"TIGER! TIGER! TIGER!" tchapa repeatedly shouted as he punched away, throwing and spamming tiger shots, woth goku using all of his monkey-like agility, getting closer and closer to the king of Siam.

"h...how is he able to throw so many fireballs?" krillin asked.

" tchapa has a strong ki level!" Jacky chun explained. "that, combined with his punching speed and stamina, allows him to throw multiple tiger shots at will!"

tchapa then cranked up his fists, looking to deal the finishing blow to the approaching goku.

"YOU'RE FINISHED!!"

goku moves at point blank range...

 

tchapa thrusts his fists again...

...but goku blocks them!!

" no...YOU'RE FINISHED!!" goku responded as he turned around at great speed, making the king of Siam spin in the air multiple times before throwing him with great strength, sensing his opponent flying, all the while cupping his hands together...

"ka...me...ha...me...HAAAAA!!!"

he then trusted his arms forward as the kamehameha blasted off of his plans, hitting the airborne king tchapa directly, sending him crashing into the wall!

"RING OUT! WINNER: SON GOKU!!"

the crowd inside the gymnasium was running wild as this incredibly competitive preliminary fight finally came to an end, the gang cheering like crazy for goku. the monkey boy, who was breathing heavily, smiled like a child who had just seen Santa Claus, relieved that he won this harder-than-expected fight.

" you did it, goku!!" krillin said as he hugged his best friend.

" that guy was tough!" bulma exclaimed

"no wonder! he's a former budokai champion, after all!" yamcha said.

" the monkey tamed the tiger king...you fought well, little warrior!" bora congratulated the monkey boy.

"i gotta say, you impressed me a lot, son goku!" Jacky chun said.

"aw man, I was not expecting such a hard fight in the prelims!" goku said as he regained his breath. "now, I'm coming for you, old man!" he said, pointing at chun.

"now, now, big guy, you should rest first!" bulma said, putting a towel around the monkey boy's neck.

"indeed, you should." bora suggested. " there still are many challenges ahead..." he said as the gang saw the crane school fighters approach them.

"well, well, i gotta say, this son goku fellow is quite impressive!" shen said with sarcasm. "no wonder he was finalist at the last tournament...a tournament that had no competition! HUA HUA HUA!"

"what do you want, old fart?" goku asked, he was not patient enough for any sarcasm.

" old fart?" shen laughed off goku's insult. " we only wanted to congratulate you! but now, with that pesky attitude of yours, we hope to teach you how to respect others!" the group then left the gang alone.

"grr, I wanna rip these guys's heads off!" krillin said, angered at the constant trash talk.

then, king tchapa got up and walked towards the gang, coming face to face with goku and shaking his hand in good sportsmanship.

" this was the best fight I had in years!" tchapa said, satisfied with his performance. "you're gonna become world champion one day, my child! I'm sure of it!"

"heh heh, thanks! you're not too shabby yourself!" goku said.

 

the rest of the prelims went by without anything noticeable happening, the gang, bora and the crane school fighters all winning their preliminary fights with ease. at the end of the day, the three turtle school fighters, the two crane school fighters, the emperor chaotzu, bora and Jacky chun all qualified!

"woohoo! all three of you qualified!" oolong cheered.

"yeah, it went pretty well!" yamcha said.

" you still got what it takes, mr. chun!" bulma told the old man.

" haha, I ain't the defending champ for nothing, baby!" chun said.

"yay, father! you are in the top 8!" upa said to his father.

" yeah, chief! you are the strongest! we are very proud if you!" a group of karinga natives chanted to their leader.

"hahaha! thank you for coming here, my brothers and sisters!" bora greeted his fellow tribesmen and women.

"oh wow, the whole tribe is here!" bulma's mom said.

" all of these people are your family?" goku asked.

"...no." upa answered.

"...but why did he call them his brothers and sisters?"

 

"it's complicated." upa answered.

 

"ATTENTION, PLEASE!!" the announcer shouted in his mic. "ALL 8 REMAINING FIGHTERS ARE ASKED TO COME TO THE BOARD FOR THE QUATER-FINALS DRAW!!"

"welp, gotta go!" yamcha said. "Ill see you later, babe!"

"take care, honey!" bulma said as she kissed her boyfriend.

" see ya later, guys!" goku and krillin waved good bye at bulma's parents, oolong and puar.

" good luck, sweetie!" panchi told the monkey boy. " we'll be cheering for you guys from the front row!"

"good luck, yamcha!" puar told his best friend.

"don't forget, you still owe me 50 zennies for that home run at center field!" oolong told the former desert bandit.

"don't worry, I got ya!" yamcha told the pig.

"farewell, my brothers and sisters, I must go. my opponents will now be known! we'll meet each other at the hotel!" bora told his tribesmen as he left upa in their care.

the trio, Jacky chun and bora all joined the three crane empire representants, standing in front of both the announcer and the board, where the brackets have been drawn.

"alright, everyone, I hope you're ready, because it's time to find out who will face who in the quarter-finals!" the announcer said as he put his hand into the bowl, mixing the names of the 8 surviving contestants.

who will face who? which crane school and turtle school fighters will face each other? will Jacky chun and bora stand a chance? perhaps even face each other?

FIND OUT NEXT TIME, ON DRAGON BALL!!

 

END OF CHAPTER

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> whew, that chapter was so tiring to write!
> 
> so yeah, I basically let bora have T-hawk's moveset, as I always called him by that name because, let's face it, he is T-hawk!
> 
> also, king tchapa is not only a more expanded upon character, but he basically has a mix of sagat and joe higashi's movesets. writing that goku vs tchapa fight was alot of fun, I imagined tchapa going all Tony ja on goku's ass!
> 
> thank you for reading! really appreciate your feedback!


	29. a deadly premonition

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the draw for the 21st tenkaichi budokai quarter-finals are finally made! who will goku and his friends face? the three crane school students? the imposing native chief bora? reigning champion Jacky chun? or perhaps even each other? all this and more!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Following is not for profit. it is strictly a fan work meant for personal amusement. Dragon ball, dragon ball z and dragon ball super is property of Akira toriyama, toyotaro, shueisha, Toei animation and shonen jump. please support the official release.
> 
> Some ideas from this fanfic are taken from Lawrence Simpson, AKA: Masakox of teamfourstar fame. check out his what-ifs, they're pretty interesting!

"alright, everyone, I hope you're ready, because it's time to find out who will face who in the quarter-finals!" the announcer said as he put his hand into the bowl, mixing the names of the 8 surviving contestants.

those same contestants were eagerly waiting with both anticipation and nervousness, wondering which opponent they will face. with three crane school students, three turtle school students and master roshi disguised as Jacky chun, it is pretty much guaranteed that the two schools will face each other in one way or another. the only exception is, of course, the karinga native chief bora, whose surprise agility and tremendous wrestling skills allowed him to be qualified.

while everybody else were visibly excited or nervous, the three crane school students, tao pai pai, tien shinhan and emperor chaotzu himself, were all relaxed and reserved, even downright emotionless. it's as if they were concentrated on something else other than what was going on in front of them...it was normal, as they were actually talking to each other via telepathy!

" so, who do you want to face?" chaotzu asked his subordinates.

"alright, here comes the draw!" the announcer said as he took out a small piece of paper. "our first fight will be...bora karinga..."

bora smiled upon hearing his name. tao pai pai was looking at the native.

" my Lord...I'll face him! it shall be a good warm-up for me!" the assassin said to his emperor. chaotzu then did a subtle motion of his index finger as the announcer took out his hand from the bowl once again.

"...against tao pai pai!"

upon hearing his name, bora and the gang looked at the assassin, who was subtly smiling underneath his mustache. ever since he saw him break his back, bora was weary of the snake's hidden murderous intent. now that he gets to face him, he needed to be extra careful. goku, meanwhile, was looking at tao pai pai, as if he was warning him that he's coming for him if he ever did something bad...which the assassin simply scoffed at him.

"up next is...jacky chun!" exclaimed the announcer upon retrieving the old man's name.

"heh heh, alright!" chun said, doing a peace sign. goku was crossing his fingers in hope that he gets called to face the man he lost the budokai finals to.

however, the triclop known as tien shinhan had other ideas.

"chaotzu, let me face the old man!" he told the emperor telepathically.

"that's emperor chaotzu to you, tien!" Tao pai pai corrected the young triclop.

"....my Lord, please let me fight the old man..." tien asked politely, looking at his senpai, who smiled of satisfaction.

"its alright, tien!" chaotzu said while smiling as he did his index finger motion again.

"...vs tien shinhan!"

"ooh, looks like I'll have my work cut out for me!" Jacky chun joked.

tien shinhan, however, wasn't laughing...he was looking at the mysterious old man intently...which brought the curiosity of tao and the emperor.

" why do you want to fight this elderly gentleman?" chaotzu asked his best friend.

"there is something...off...about him..." tien responded. "and earlier, today, I felt something weird...like somebody penetrated my mind or something..."

"the old man is a telepath, too?" tao pai pai asked.

"i dunno for sure...but he did step back in surprise at the same moment that weird feeling left my conscience..." tien answered, prompting the other crane empire representatives to look at chun.

"alright, up next, we'll have..." the announcer said before going pale from reading the name on the paper. "...oh wow, it's emperor chaotzu the first!"

everybody went on alert when the emperor's name was called. tien and tao pai pai immediately looked at the small, pale child, who was smiling...he looked rather eerie when he smiled, what with his pale face, expressionless eyes and red dots on his cheeks.

" my Lord..." tien said telepathically. "...who will you pick as your opponent?"

however, as he asked that, chaotzu immediately did his finger motion again, prompting tien and two pai pai to look at the announcer, wondering who did the child emperor picked...

"he'll face off against..."

everybody sweated, as the announcer opened the small piece of paper and read it...

"...krillin!"

"phew! i dont get to face goku!" krillin exclaimed in relief. yamcha, however, was not relieved at all, because...

" the last quarter-finals matchup will be son goku vs yamcha!" the announcer said.

"wait, really?" goku asked. " let me check that."

everybody were dumbfounded as goku moved towards the bowl.

"h...he's actually serious?" the announcer said, speechless at such stupidity.

goku put his hand inside the bowl and grabbed two papers...which had his and yamcha's name on them.

" oh wow, he's right! we will fight each other in the quarters!" goku exclaimed, surprised at this supposed magic trick. "are you a magician or something, mr. announcer?" he asked, everyone sweating in disbelief.

" oh my fucking god..." yamcha facepalmed at both goku's stupidity and the fact that he's going to face the monkey boy.

meanwhile, krillin looked at the crane empire representatives with a cocky smile on his face.

"heh, looks like I got the longest end of the straw!" krillin exclaimed upon looking at emperor chaotzu. " I'm gonna make you regret putting your so-called "emperor" back where he truly belongs: to kindergarten!"

"it's the longest end of the stick!..." tien corrected the bald monk. "...don't listen to this insolent bald brat, my lord."

"BALD?! look who's talking!" krillin said,pointing at tien and chaotzu.

"nope, I'm not bald!" the emperor said as he lifted his Rene hat, revealing a bald head...that had a single hair that stood like a tower. "I'm sorry, but your attempt at taunting failed!"

"hey, being bald is way better than having only one piece of hair!" krillin said in response.

"alright, settle down, everyone!" Jackie chun said to the two groups representing the turtle and crane schools. " how about we let the announcer finish?"

" yes, we don't wanna spend the whole day here." bora, the native chief, said.

"alright, gentlemen!" the announcer continued. "the draw has been done! the finals will begin tomorrow at 3PM, with the grand finals on sunday. with that said, have a well-deserved break!" he said as everyone soon left for their hotels.

 

soon after leaving the gymnasium, goku, krillin and yamcha were reunited with bulma and her parents, as well as oolong and yamcha.

"hey, oolong! where have you been?" goku asked the pig.

"inside bulma's bag, suffocating to death!" said an angry oolong.

"hey, you're free, get over it!" bulma said.

" so, has everything gone well, boys?" bulma's mom asked.

" yeah! I'm gonna face yamcha!" goku exclaimed happily, much to yamcha's chagrin.

"woah, really? you're out of luck, honey!" bulma said jokingly.

"h-hey, it's alright, I can definitely win this!" yamcha said with fake assurance.

"haha! I can't wait to see how strong you've become!" goku told the former desert bandit, who reacted by laughing very hesitantly.

"what about you, krillin? who will you face?" bulma asked the bald monk.

"the emperor himself!" krillin said.

" oh my! such a prestigious opponent!"

"he doesn't look that strong, though..." krillin said.

"hohoho, have you forgotten what goku and I told you?" master roshi suddenly appeared. "the emperor possesses a special something. I'm afraid you will have to be on your guard against him!"

"hey, you're finally out of the toilets!" bulma exclaimed. "what have you been doing here? you missed the entire prelims!"

" actually, I was there!" roshi responded.

"what? we didn't even see you!" puar exclaimed.

"well, there were so many people in the gymnasium that it was impossible to see each other." roshi said.

" hmm, true..." the gang whispered.

" anyways, you really improved by a lot!" roshi said to his three students. "and, I gotta say, the native warrior also impressed me with his agility!"

" yeah, chief bora is really strong!" goku said. "you saw that karinga typhoon technique of his?"

" yeah, very powerful!" roshi answered. "and, as I predicted, your biggest challenge will be the crane school fighters."

"and Jacky chun, too!" goku said.

"in fact, the entire tournament is incredibly competitive!" yamcha said. "goku almost got beat by king tchapa in the prelims! can you imagine that?"

" indeed, I witnessed this excellent fight!" roshi said. "you really held you own against a former champion!" he told the monkey boy.

"i'm hungry..." goku said, touching his gargling stomach.

"yeah, fighting all day long really made us hungry..." both yamcha and krillin touched their stomachs.

"alright then, let's head to a restaurant." bulma suggested.

" yeah, but we don't know any here..." Dr. briefs said, looking at the GPS in his phone.

" i know a place downtown not far from here..." roshi said.

while roshi was talking about the restaurant, goku noticed bora, upa and the rest of their tribe walking into the parking lot, carrying all sorts of baggages. the monkey boy then approached the tribe.

" hey, bora! upa!" goku called the karinga warrior and his son, who wondered what was the monkey boy doing here. "wanna come eat with us?" he asked the natives.

"well, we're about to leave for our hotel..." upa said, looking at his senior tribesmen.

"come to think of it, I'm hungry, too!" a tribesman said. 

" yeah, me too!" a tribeswoman holding her child in her hands said.

"looks like you aren't the only hungry wolves here!" bora said , laughing. "how about we eat with our new friends?" he asked his fellow tribesmen, to which they agreed, much to goku and upa's joy. when the tribe joined the gang, bora was surprised when he saw master roshi.

"n-no way, you're friends with the legendary turtle hermit?" bora asked, not believing what he was seeing.

" yeah!" goku confirmed. "he's my master!"

"it makes sense! after all, you did use the kamehameha!" bora said, as he was smiling like a boy. "I can't believe it! my grand-father and father were your biggest fans back when you were active, muten roshi!" he said, shaking roshi's small hand with his large hand. "if only they were still alive! I would've introduced you to them!"

"hmm, yes, I knew your grand-father well enough..." roshi told the tall native warrior. "...he was always in the front row cheering for me, and he was a pretty good fighter, too! didn't knew your father also died, too, though."

"yes, he died while defending our territory against the red ribbon army." bora explained.

"wait, you fought the red ribbon?" bulma asked.

"yea, but that is a long story..." the karinga chief said."...it'd be better if I tell you all about our tribe's history at the restaurant."

" yeah, good idea!" roshi said.

"come on, let's go, already! I'm hungry!" goku said with impatience as everybody went to their limousines in order to go to the restaurant that roshi talked about.

 

 

a while later, inside the emperor's temple, the servants were cleaning the floors, walls and ornaments so as to look as clean and lustrous as possible. the temple of the emperor is seen as sacred ground, and, according to legend, if the emperor's temple is not cleaned everyday, demons would come to bring misfortune on those who neglected their duties for the emperor. that's why the servants work very hard to accomplish anything the emperor wants.

on the top floor of the temple stood the emperor's room. upon entering this most sacred place, one would immediately notice the impeccable woodwork stretching from the floor to the walls, with finely crafted hardwood protecting the emperor from any unwelcome guests. that's also why there is a single window, longing the westernmost wall, giving its bystander a view of the entire city of danhua. speaking of bystanders, there was one looking at the window inside the emperor's room.

it was tien, who was admiring the view of the crane empire's capital, so vibrant at night with its various neon colors and busy downtown. as chaotsu's personal bodyguard, tien is the only person allowed in the emperor's room at all time. for this, they put a second bed in the room for him.

tien, being tired of looking at the window, went to his bed sighing, taking one last look at chaotzu before going to bed himself.

the emperor was sleeping peacefully in his king-size bed, a serene look covering his face. tien couldn't help but feel sympathy for the child. they've known each other since chaotzu was born, the fruit of the union between the former holders of the imperial throne. back then, he was only 12, and he was beginning his training at the crane school under the recommendation of his father, the former personal bodyguard of the emperor. 4 years after, chaotzu entered the school to learn how to fight. it was there that the two became best friends, more or less due to the fact that they share a common background: that of children born from an important lineage who soon were forced into positions and circumstances that ordinary children would find impossible to bear.

all of a sudden, chaotzu woke up screaming, his eyes locked in a thousand yard stare. startled by this sudden developpement, tien quickly grabbed chaotzu in his arms, hugging him tight.

"h-hey, chaotzu, what's wrong?" tien asked, looking at the child emperor, who was crying out of fear.

" oh, tien, it was so horrible!" chaotzu cried on the triclop's shoulders. since he was sleeping not too long ago, tien guessed that he must have had a nightmare. being both telepaths, tien knew that dreams and nightmares have a particularly strong impact on them. their telepathic abilities enhances their subconscious experiences. sweet dreams are made even sweeter, almost to the point of being in a joyful trance, while nightmares are even more terrifying, to the point of almost becoming night terrors. it was already hard to deal with for tien, so he can imagine how horrifying it must be for a child like chaotzu.

"its alright, my Lord...its just a nightmare." the triclop comforted his best friend.

"i told you to stop calling me that, tien!" chaotzu said, still crying. "to me, you are my best friend, not just my bodyguard!"

"i know." tien simply answered, smiling. "you should go back to sleep, we're gonna need rest in order to fight tomorrow's battles."

chaotzu didn't answer. he only remembered the awful nightmare he just had.

"...what happened in your nightmare?" tien asked the pale-skinned child emperor.

"well, you see..." chaotzu began. "...it didn't feel like a nightmare...it felt like...a premonition."

" what?" tien was surprised at what chaotzu just said. "what kind of premonition?"

"I saw master shen and general tao..." chaotzu began talking. "...they...they were holding two people hostage..."

tien then became interested. he knew first hand what his despicable master and senpai were capable of... "who were these people?" he asked.

"a middle-aged man with a mustache...and a girl..." chaotzu answered. "...they were suffering...being tortured..." chaotzu began crying again.

"calm down, chaotzu. keep your head cool, i need you to tell me everything correctly." tien serenely told the child emperor.

"...and then..." chaotzu continued. "...t-they had some sort of...compass...which they used to locate the dragon balls..."

"a dragon ball locator?" tien said, remembering hearing his master talk about something similar to what chaotzu just described.

 

"...and then...they...they summoned shenron...and master shen wished to become emperor!"

tien was shocked! if this really is a premonition, then it's possible that his own master is planning to overthrow chaotzu! "...but why? why would he do such a thing?" tien asked, though he knew that his master wasn't a saint.

"at the end of the nightmare, he...he said something...about killing...killing a..."demon king" of some sorts." chaotzu finished.

"a...demon king?" tien was confused by those last words. he's never heard of any demon king, not from his master, not from books or documentaries, nothing! "...who is this "demon king that he mentioned?"

"i dunno..." chaotzu answered. "...my nightmare ended just as he said that."

tien looked around the room, taking in the information that he just received. was this a nightmare? or was it really a premonition? nonetheless, he knew that his master was always up to no good, and an ambitious plan like that wasn't exactly too far fetched for him...

then, chaotzu grabbedgrabbed tien's arm, and looked at him with worry,as if he was begging to be relieved.

" tien...you'll always be there to help me...right?"

tien then smiled and hugged haotzu tightly. despite being the emperor, chaotzu is only a child. a child should never have such big responsibilities on his shoulders. part of him felt that this was all a way for master shen to do whatever he wanted in his foolish quest for revenge.

"of course!" tien answered chaotzu. "after all, I'm the emperor's bodyguard!"

then, chaotzu pulled tien close to his face.

"no, I don't want the emperor's bodyguard!" chaotzu said with an intense stare right into tien's three eyes. "...i want the person that helped me the most in times of need! my best friend, tien shinhan!"

tien was surprised at the voice tone behind chaotzu words. his little friend looked at him with both admiration and respect...just as he always looked at chaotzu with respect due to taking all of the responsibilities of an emperor to heart, and actually doing a decent job at it. he then continued hugging chaotzu in a friendly manner, calming the pale child. still, he can't help but feel bad for him and the fact that master shen is most certainly using him as a tool to gain power. and if that premonition is true, he might be making his move soon...

as chaotzu fell to sleep, tien couldn't help but have the feeling that he was being watched...

 

 

meanwhile, we find goku and his friends share a good time with bora, upa and their karinga tribesmen and women sitting at multiple tables inside the restaurant that master roshi suggested, with the turtle school students, roshi himself, oolong, puar, the briefs, bora and upa all sitting together in a circular bench. the restaurant in question was a well-regarded one that specialises in Chinese cuisine, with praise coming for the quality and refinement of its cuisine combined with a warm, friendly atmosphere.

" hahaha, I never thought we were sleeping at the same hotel!" bulma said to the karinga chief.

"i'm just as surprised!" bora responded back. "the world is definitely small!"

"man, it's so hard, picking up food with these sticks!" upa said as he tried eating his ramen with the famous Chinese sticks.

"hold on, let me show you!" goku said as he taught upa how to use the sticks.

"say, why are you competing at the tournament?" roshi asked the muscular native chief.

" yeah, you said you would tell us after our fights!" krillin said.

"indeed, I promised you that..." bora said. "...and, as chief of the karinga tribe, is is my duty to keep my promises!" he said as he took a seep breath and began explaining the history of his tribe and their recent struggles with the red ribbon army.

 

meanwhile, a mysterious man, whose face was hidden underneath his big straw hat, entered the restaurant and sat near the gang's table. he was wearing simple clothing, reminiscent of a fisherman. when the garçon arrived and served him tea, the man grabbed his cup and took a sip, before completely immobilising himself, as if he was listening to their conversation...

 

"the red ribbon attacked you for the treasure that you possessed?" bulma's mother asked bora.

"yes. thankfully, the eagleland army came to our aid, and repelled the invaders." the karinga chief explained. "though I fear that, even though you guys destroyed the red ribbon army, that the emperor will not rest until he gets his hands on the treasure."

"and what is that treasure of yours?" yamcha asked.

" we actually brought It with us!" upa said. "we hope that, with father winning the tournament, that we'll be granted an audience with the emperor and use the treasure as a bargaining chip in order to have him leave us alone!"

"you have it with you? can we see it?" krillin asked.

bora then took a brown bag from underneath his seat. it was sealed tight with a rope, and what was contained inside was round and had the size of a softball. bora then opened the bag, put his hand inside it and took out the treasure.

and that's where everyone gasped in surprise as the treasure was revealed to be none other than a dragon ball! goku, in particular, was in ecstasy, as he immediately realised that the ball had four stars in it!

" OH WOW, THAT'S MY GRANDPA'S BALL!!" the monkey boy shouted in tears of joy as he pounced on the karinga chief, taking the ball in his hands and dancing jubilantly, finally reunited with his grandpa's last memorabilia. while goku's friends were happy for him, bora, upa and bulma's parents were all confused.

"...care to explain what's going on?" dr. briefs asked bulma.

" the four-star dragon ball used to belong to goku's dead grandpa." bulma explained. "when I first met him, they lived in a house on top of mount paozu, and I followed the dragon radar to his home, where it was laying on a cushion."

" Oh, his grandpa is dead?" bulma's mom said. "no wonder he was so happy when he saw it! it must be very important to him!"

"dragon radar? what is that?" bora asked the purple-haired scientist.

"its a compass that I built...here!" bulma answered as she shows the radar to the karinga chief and his son. "with a sonar blip, it allows me to find dragon balls, no matter where they are in the world!"

"wow, amazing!" upa exclaimed.

"i know, right? capturing dragon balls are so easy now with the radar!" goku said.

" you city folks have such fascinating technology!" bora said. "however, I still prefer the simplicity of life in our village! sure, we may not have these fancy gadgets, but we feel a lot more connected to nature, something which is very important to us."

"oh, believe me, we hope that humanity will one day be as passionate about the environment as you guys!" Dr. briefs said.

"i especially don't wanna witness all those cute lil baby tigers becoming extinct!" bulma's mom said, which made the native chief smile.

"with such awesome science at your disposal, it's a miracle that those red rribbon thugs didn't come after you!" upa said.

" oh, they did come after us, alright!" krillin said. "...and we answered by ending their reign of terror once and for all!" he boasted.

"wow, i knew you were strong when I saw you fight earlier today, but you must be really strong if you destroyed the red ribbon army!" upa exclaimed.

"ha! you and your dad haven't seen nothing yet!" goku said.

"i look forward to facing each other, if we both make it to the finals!" bora said to the monkey boy, who nodded in anticipation.

" you must beware, chief bora!" master roshi said. "tao pai pai is a professional killer, and he knows how and where to hurt people!"

"i know..." bora said, looking serious. "...a snake may look inoffensive, but once your back is turned, it is too late to avoid their venomous bite! and, after you destroyed the red ribbon, it won't be surprising to have the entire pack of snake be chasing after you, Mrs. bluma...and they would no doubt be looking for that dragon ball locator of yours, too."

the gang all looked pensive with what bora just said. it reminded them that they were deep in enemy territory, and one small mistake could leave to great consequences. bulma and her family were especially concerned, as they knew that what bora said might be true...

meanwhile, the straw hat man who was sitting at the table near them bowed his head down, smirking...

" hey, can I ask you a question?" goku asked bora, lighting up the mood.

"sure! what is it?"

"how are you and your tribesmen's skins so red? you all have sunburns or something?" goku asked with complete innocence, surprising every karinga tribesmen.

"GOKUUU!!!" bulma said, putting the monkey boy in a head lock as punishment for asking such an insensitive question while roshi, yamcha and krillin were apologising profusely to bora and upa, who all smiled hesitantly while assuring them that it was okay.

meanwhile, the straw hat man finished his ramen bowl, just as the garçon was arriving to clear his table.

"all done?" the garçon asked him.

"yeah. your ramen is really good!" the straw hat man told the young servant.

"thank you very much, sir!" the boy said with a smile. he then looked at the table where all the commotion took place. " man, the turtle school representants sure are noisy!" the garçon said. "wonder how the residents of the shangxin hotel will sleep with these people..."

 

"...you know their hotel?" the straw hat man asked the garçon.

" yeah! I saw those guys parking their cars along with the natives from over there, earlier today!" he answered.

that's where the straw hat man finally lifted his head, revealing himself to be...none other than tao pai pai!

"...and where could that hotel be?" the disguised assasin asked the garçon...

 

END OF CHAPTER

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ooh, boy, this chapter was a hassle to write!
> 
> i mean, I have so many ideas on where could this arc go that I'm basically making stuff up as I go along! and because of that, it took a lot longer to write and it basically forced me to structure my plans for once.
> 
> i hope you're enjoying this as much as I enjoy writing it! thank you for reading!


	30. A quiet, peaceful night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> after a grueling day of fighting at the tournament, son goku and his friends go out at the danhua entertainment district, havong all sorts of fun and playing all sorts of games before enjoying a relaxing night at their comfortable hotel...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Following is not for profit. it is strictly a fan work meant for personal amusement. Dragon ball, dragon ball z and dragon ball super is property of Akira toriyama, toyotaro, shueisha, Toei animation and shonen jump. please support the official release.
> 
> Some ideas from this fanfic are taken from Lawrence Simpson, AKA: Masakox of teamfourstar fame. check out his what-ifs, they're pretty interesting!

the city of danhua truly gets alive once the night falls. countless neon lights illuminates its streets as the entertainment district, for one night, becomes the center of attention for any touristspassing by. it is the case for son goku and his friends, who went out for some fun after eating well at the restaurant not too long ago.

"woah, it's so shiny! there are colors everywhere!" goku said, mesmerized by the variety of colors around the streets.

"look at how many people there are!" bulma's mother said as they were impressed by the mass of people walking down the streets. 

" heh heh, now that's my kind of place!" master roshi said as he approached a love hotel.

" huh? what are you doing, master?" goku asked innocently as he followed roshi to the love hotel. "that's not our hotel, so why are you sleeping here?"

" GOKU, GET BACK HERE!!" bulma shouted as she kicked roshi so hard that he penetrated inside a room, startling a couple who was taking part in a BDSM session. bulma then dragged goku by the arm, much to the monkey boy's confusion while yamcha and krillin gulped at the fury of bulma.

"...hey, look, there are even batting cages!" yamcha said as he pointed towards a warehouse whose windows demonstrated batting cages, where baseball fans, players and casuals practiced their swings. upon entering it, yamcha went to the hardest-throwing machine, picking up a bat and stretching his limbs.

"really? you're going straight after the hardest difficulty?" krillin asked.

"from what I've seen of yamcha playing, he's a really good hitter!" bulma said. "he's got a really good eye at the plate...or whatever he calls those baseball terms of his."

" heh, pitching machines has no secrets to hide from me!" yamcha boasted as he pointed at the machine with his bat before taking his stance.

"don't get so cocky, young man!" master roshi said. " you may be the hot stuff at the college level...but, if you make it to the major leagues, batting cages might be the only times you'll actually hit a baseball!" he said, laughing.

yamcha silently took the criticism. this was his chance to prove that he could hit major league pitches. after all, the hardest throwing machines are said to be the one closest enough to the best pitches thrown in pro baseball. he carefully focused in on the mechanical arm, which was cranking up, baseball in hand...the wind up came at a blistering speed, so much so that the gang didn't even see the pitch coming...

...but yamcha did! as if in slow motion, the desert bandit analysed the pitch thrown, a curve ball cutting down the middle from his right side, thrown at 90 miles per hour. he kicked his leg high, held his breath and swung at the exact moment the ball reaches home plate.

"TAAAAAHHH!!!!"

with a thunderous "WHACK!!", the bat hits the ball at full strength, right down the pipe as th ball flew high and far, hitting the home run target with a resounding "TANG!".

the gang were amazed at that home run, and roshi quickly shut up, whistling as if nothing happened.

"woah! what a blast!" goku exclaimed.

"it almost blew up the target!" bulma said.

"...so, whaddya think?" yamcha asked his impressed friends and girlfriend.

"I can't believe you managed to perfectly call that! that's a major league level pitch!" krillin said, stupefied.

" well, from the games I've seen at yamcha's college, he can already start at a big league club, in my humble opinion!" Dr. briefs said.

"i'd like to try, too!" goku said, prompting everyone to turn around, wondering if he was actually serious.

" goku...you know this machine throws ace-level stuff, right?" krillin asked his best friend.

"its like fighting..." goku explained. "...even if your opponent seems strong, if you focus, you'll find his weaknesses and patterns."

while bulma and her parents weren't convinced, yamcha, krillin, master roshi and even oolong thought that there was some truth in goku's words. whether it's martial arts or not, the key to winning in sports is often analysing and finding weaknesses in your opponents that you can exploit, be it a flaw in their tactics, their swing mechanics or even their lack of mental strength.

"okay...but I have to warn you..." yamcha said, giving the bat to goku. "...you'll find it very hard to hit home runs against that machine!"

" heh, this will make it even more exciting!" goku said with a determined smile. he then stepped up to the plate, stretched his limbs and positioned himself to hit, his hair barely kept under his helmet.

"y...you don't really think he's gonna hit that pitch, right?" bulma asked.

"he seems rather determined, at least!" her mom said.

goku then focused hard on the machine, fixating the mechanical arm like a surgeon fixating the body part he's working on. last the mechanical arm cranked up, goku readied himself, looking to slug that ball right out of the cage!

the pitch came...

a four-seam fastball...

goku swings....

 

...and hits nothing but air!

"w--what just happened?" goku said, looking dizzy as he didn't even see the ball coming.

"just as expected..." yamcha sighed.

"its ok, goku, let's go." bulma said.

" No!" goku sternly exclaimed. "i won't stop until i hit that ball!" he said as he swung at every pitch that followed, missing them each and everytime. the gang wondered if they should let goku continue or drag him off the batting cage...

then, something miraculous happened.

goku, now fully concentrated, saw everything in slow motion, like yamcha did earlier. once he saw the next pitch, a change up, he swung at full strength.

"TEIYAAAAAAHH!!!"

"CRACK!!!"

the entire gang wet their pants as goku hits the ball and sends it flying, piercing both the home run target and the roof of the batting cage as the ball flies away to ballhala.

the gang only looked at goku with stupefaction, as the monkey boy celebrated his first home run off a major league pitch.

 

later, the gang entered a game center, which was home to various arcade games, pinball machines and a crane game. bulma and yamcha were playing one of the crane games, while goku, krillin and master roshi were at a hammer game.

"test your strength and see if you are worthy of carrying thor's hammer...'" goku read what was written on the machine. "...looks like fun!"

"i never had a good score at the hammer game..." krillin said. "...maybe, after all those years of training, I'll finally get the top score!"

"first, you'll have to beat...THIS!!" roshi exclaimed as he beefed up, picked up the hammer and hit the button really hard, the pin hitting the bell with a loud "CLANG!" as the light got up to the upper middle square, 4 squares from the top.

"not fair! you beefed up!" both goku and krillin said at the same time.

"i have no choice!" roshi said. "I'm the size of a skeleton, I can't lift that hammer otherwise!"

" anyways, it's my turn!" krillin said as he took a deep breath and stretched his limbs. he then pit his hands in the hammer, taking a deep breath and closing his eyes, an aura appearing around his tiny frame.

"TEEEEIII!!!"

with a strong kiai, the bald monk lifted the heavy hammer and slammed it on the button, prompting the pin to hit the bell at a blistering pace. the light eventually stopped two squares above master roshi and two squares before the top score!

"haha! awesome!!" krillin exclaimed as he jumped around in joy.

"you've become so strong, krillin!" goku said, happy for his best friend.

"indeed..." roshi whispered while sweating. the budokai is gonna be a hard tournament for the hermit. he already had to deal with the young triclop known as tien shinhan and, potentially, tao paipai in the semis...and, if he makes it past these two, he'll have to fave a much improved goku or krillin!

"alright, now it's my turn!" goku said as he put his hands on the hammer.

 

with one swift movement, goku lifted it...

"HAAAA!!!"

...and, with one mighty swing, he destroys the button, the pin flying so fast that it blows up the bell and flies away, ricochetting across the walls as everybody ran for cover...

 

...all except yamcha and bulma, who were busy with playing a crane game.

"oh my god, babe, you're gonna make it!" yamcha said as he witnessed the impossible: bulma just grabbed something with the claw! that something in question was a hello kitty plush.

"finally, after all those years of trying, I finally caught something!" bulma exclaimed as the claw was about to drop the plush...

 

...only for the entire game to explode right in both lovers's faces as the pin from the hammer game crashed into the crane machine, making it explode on contact.

 

we later find the gang inside the limousine, yamcha and bulma having a mean look towards goku, who scratched his head in apology. both yamcha and Bulma's hair were extremely undone thanks to the machine exploding in their faces.

 

the gang's limousine finally arrived at their hotel, where they would go to their rooms to rest and relax before the start of the quarter-finals of the tenkaichi budokai. the hotel in question is a shangxin hotel, part of the world-famous hotel chain of the same name. it might be pretty expensive, but its comfy beds, impeccably clean rooms and various activities makes it one of the highest rated hotel chains in the world. besides, 220 zennies a room is pocket change for the briefs!

 

after parking the limo, the gang opened the trunk and carried the bags of bought goods to their rooms...not knowing that somebody was watching them in the distance...

" man, what an awesome day! haven't had this much fun in ages!" goku exclaimed.

" goku, be quiet!" bulma whispered. "people are sleeping at this hour!"

"speaking of sleep, we should get a good night of it." master roshi suggested to his students. "we will have tough opponents to fight, tomorrow!"

"rest is an important component of a warrior's life." bora, the native chief, said as he greeted them.

" hey! how've you been?" goku asked the tall, muscular native. "did you go have fun tonight, too?"

"nay, we didn't go out for pleasure..." bora answered. "...we went out at the hills near the hotel to pray before the big day, tomorrow."

"pray? what for? it's not like it's a fight to the death!" goku said.

"the natives of eagleland are very religious..." bulma said. "...they pray to the sun, the rain, the animals or whatever they are praying in order to give them strength or healing."

"really? that's what me and my grandpa did, too! though we prayed to buddha instead of spirits." goku said.

" and who might your grandpa be?" bora asked the monkey boy.

"his name is son gohan."

" what? son gohan is your grandpa? unbelievable!" bora exclaimed. " we have martial arts royalty in our hotel!"

"he was a king?" goku asked, prompting everybody to facepalm.

"let go to sleep, goku!" master roshi told the monkey boy as he joined krillin and the turtle hermit in their room, while yamcha, bulma and her parents entered theirs...

"oh, wait, I forgot my fight gear!" yamcha said as he turned around and came back to the limo.

"make it quick! we want to sleep!" bulma told her boyfriend as she crashed into the comfy bed.

in the other room, goku and krillin did the same, immediately falling asleep on their comfy king-sized bed.

" hey, you didn't even took your baths yet!" master roshi exclaimed at the boys, horrified at the foul smell emitting from their bodies, which was very sweaty from all the fighting they did today. after they took their baths, they could finally sleep, resting and relaxing into unconsciousness as they dreamed of eternal glory at the tournament.

 

they fell asleep....

serenity taking over their faces as the moonlight covered them.

 

suddenly....

 

"AAAAAAARRGH!!!"

a terrifying scream of pain echoed through the floor as goku, krillin and master roshi woke up immediately.

" w-what was that?" said krillin, who was trembling in fear.

"that...that came from bulma's room!" goku exclaimed as he quickly got out of bed and ran towards the room in front.

" hey, bulma!" goku shouted as he repeatedly knocked on the door multiple times. as he kept on knocking and knocking, many people came to the room, equally curious as to what happened in the room. among the crowd was upa and the karinga tribesmen, the former looking especially worried as he reached the door.

"father! what happened? open the door!" the little native said as he knocked on the door.

"your dad's in there?" goku asked.

"yeah!" upa confirmed. " he went to the scientist in order to ask something, but he never came back!" he said as worry took over his face.

"h-hey, let me through!" said somebody who was tossing away the crowd right and left. it was yamcha, who had a bag carrying his fight gear on his shoulder. he finally made his way towards the hotel door. "guys, what's going on?"

"we don't know!" goku said. "we were sleeping when somebody screamed." he then put his ear on the door, hearing a sobbing panchi calling 911.

"wait, why is bulma's mom crying? " goku asked, now extremely worried about bulma. yamcha was, too, and he immediately used his key card to open the door to his hotel room.

 

as soon as the gang entered, they were in shock at what they saw. in front of them stood the hotel room, now all messed up, with furniture all over the place and the walls had cracks...and, most worryingly, both bulma and Dr. briefs were laying on the ground, with bulma's mother, panchi, crying out of fear and stress in a corner. the window was also broken, with no signs of glass on the floor, as if something was thrown through the window.

"BULMA!!" both goku and yamcha shouted as they immediately jumped at the body of the purple-haired scientist, while the rest of the gang went towartoward Dr. briefs and his wife. the good doctor eventually woke up as roshi, krillin and the tribesmen helped him get up, his wife hugging him tight.

while everybody were relieved that Dr. briefs was fine, goku and yamcha were horrified at the sight in front of them: there was blood on the spot where bulma laid, and the purple-haired scientist's eyes were wide open and devoid of life...only to regain some of it as she coughed really hard, blood bursting out of her mouth!

"Bulma!!" yamcha exclaimed as goku looked on in sheer terror. her friend, her best friend, was dying in front of him!

"w...whats going on? what happened?" goku asked, not sure how to react.

"w...we were attacked!" Dr. briefs said. "i-i was put to sleep, and then I hea...OH MY GOD, BULMA!!" the scientist said upon looking at the critical state bulma was in. "s-she's bleeding from the inside! somebody call an ambulance!!"

"don't worry, I got her covered!" somebody suddenly exclaimed, prompting the gang to look behind them...

It was none other than the three-eyed bodyguard of the emperor, tien shinhan!

" WHAT??" everybody shouted in surprise at this unexpected developpement. "w-w-what are you doing here?"

"i'll explain later, now leave this to me!" tien said as he pushed everybody away and took a look at the dying bulma.

" w-what are you gonna do? please save my baby!!" panchi supplied in panic.

"i will, don't you worry!" the triclop said as he put his hands towards bulma's body. suddenly, a ball of ki appeared and blasted right into her, making her body twist in all sorts of directions, under the fearful eyes of everybody present. then, when all of this was done, there was a moment of silence...before bulma opened her eyes in pain, her body contortioning in all directions before finally relaxing and falling unconscious.

"b-bulma! are you alright?" yamcha asked his girlfriend as goku and roshi watched on.

"w...what did you do to her?" dr. briefs asked roshi.

"i healed her using ki." tien explained. "she was suffering from internal bleeding, caused by general tao's strike." he said as he pointed at the fingerprints on bulma's stomach.

"t...that bastard hit her?" yamcha said as he could hardly contain his fury.

"bulma was struck on the solar plexus, one of the most important pressue points on the human body." the triclop explained. " when struck, the victim loses its breath, breaks its ribs, potentially the sternum and collar bone, and punctures the arteries, resulting in internal bleeding."

"oh my god..." bulma's mother whispered as the gang looked on as bulma winced and screamed in pain, tears falling down her eyes as she struggled to breath properly.

"only an expert on human anatomy and acupuncture knows where to hit in order to kill...and assassins like general tao is one of them!" tien said.

"s...such cruelty...befitting of tao pai pai!" master roshi said in disgust.

"...thank you so much, dude!" yamcha said to tien, shedding manly years as he hugged his unconscious girlfriend tightly.

" yes, thank you so much for saving our child!" bulma's parents told the bald triclop.

"heh, and we all thought you were a bad guy..." krillin said, scratching his head.

" oh no, he's far from being a bad guy!" master roshi said as he looked at tien. "i know very well how much pain he is going through in his heart."

"the...turtle hermit..." tien said as he couldn't believe that he was talking to his master's arch-nemesis. for all the shit talking that his master does about roshi on a daily basis, he seemed to be an amicable person according to tien...though, of course, he was informed by his master of what roshi did to him, so he knew he wasn't exactly a saint, either...

"Pleasure to talk to you again, tien shinhan!" roshi said.

tien was extremely confused. talk to him again? he never talked to him before! how could he...

then, suddenly, a thought came to his head. specifically, he remembered when he felt that someone was penetrating his mind at the prelims.

"wait...the one who was penetrating my mind...it was you??" tien shinhan asked the turtle hermit.

"before i answer your question, please, answer mine: what are you doing here?" the hermit asked, prompting everybody to look at the triclop in anticipation to his answer.

"...i followed tao here..." he started, getting the attention of everybody. "...actually, it started back at the imperial palace. I was sleeping in the same room as the emperor when he woke up screaming. as his bodyguard, naturally, I hurried to his bed and asked him what was going on...turns out he had a premonition."

"a premonition?" the gang said in unison.

"yes..." tien confirmed. "...in it, he foresaw master shen and general tao doing great damage to a girl and a mustaches man..." he said, looking at Dr. briefs and the injured bulma. "...master shen then collected all dragon balls and wished to become emperor..."

"hmm, as of now, the first step just happened." krillin said.

"and it doesn't surprise me the least if tao pai pai attacked you guys in order to get the dragon radar!" roshi told Dr. briefs.

at that moment, Dr. briefs checked inside her daughter's pockets...and looked as if it was the end of the world just happened!

"t-the dragon radar! it's gone!" the good doctor shouted.

"so the premonition is true!" tien said. "general tao will use that dragon ball locator to find them all so that master shen can have his revenge and vanquish the demon king!"

"demon king?" everyone bar roshi said in unison. roshi only looked in stupefaction as he heard those words...they were incredibly familiar to him.

"wait, i remember it now!" dr. briefs suddenly exclaimed, capturing the attention of everyone. "chief bora came to our room to warn us about a great danger of sorts...he talked about a "demon king" being freed, just like what you are talking about, young man!" Dr. briefs told tien, who was intrigued.

"really?" the young triclop said. "do you know who this demon king is, doctor?" he asked.

"i dunno...thats what I'm wondering myself..." Dr. briefs said. he then looked at roshi, who was looking at the floor. "...what about you, Mr. roshi? do you know who this "demon king" might be?"

"...indeed, I do..." roshi answered in a somber tone. "...this is a name I never thought I would hear again..." he said, clenching his fist. "...but you still didn't answer my question...how did you get here?" 

tien immediately obliged. "...after chaotzu told me his premonition, I felt like I was being watched... i then followed the footsteps near the emperor's room, and there he was, walking along the corridor, general tao  
himself... he then jumped out of a window, heading towards downtown...i followed him around town...then, he stopped at a restaurant...the shen long, more specifically."

"wait...thats the restaurant we've eaten at!" roshi said as everybody sweated hard at the mere thought that tao pai pai was right there all this time and they didn't noticed...

"...anyways, soon after, you guys left the building and headed to your limo...and, soon after, general tao came out and followed you around. once again, I followed him, and it led right to your hotel. by the time i arrived, however, he was already gone...by then, I realised that the mustached man and the girl in chaotzu's premonition were Dr. briefs and his daughter, and, knowing that you built a dragon ball locator of some sort, that general tao was out to get them...as I made my way into the hotel, I heard the scream and immediately arrived at the scene."

the gang took some time to process all the information that tien gave them....meanwhile, goku looked at his purple-haired friend and listened to her groans of pain. he desperately hoped that it would all stop. these unpleasant noises, as well as the thought of any bastard hurting bulma, or any one of his friends for that matter, made him sick.

 

...and angry

...really, really angry.

"...where did he go?" the monkey boy asked bulma's parents with complete seriousness and authority in his voice, surprising the adults in the room.

"i...i dunno..." bulma's mother said as she tried to calm down. "...that man...that man left by the window after breaking it!"

"hold on, where is my father? where is he??" upa supplied bulma's mother, who didn't answered, looking down as she was about to cry.

" yes, where is our chief?" one of the tribesmen asked.

goku, too obscured by his desire for revenge, went by the broken window to try and breath out his anger and clear his mind so as to know what he should do.

...then, he looked down...

what he saw disturbed him profoundly.

there, on a pike standing in a fence, was the body of bora, chief of the karinga tribe, dead. the pike piercing through his chest as he laid lifeless on the fence.

"...he's down below..." goku told everyone with great disturbance in his voice. everyone gasped the moment they saw bora's dead body. ups, in particular, was in complete denial, as the sight of his dead father broke him to the point of tears, a tribeswoman hugging him in Pity.

"the native chief fought the attacker...but he received the short end of the stick..." bulma's mother said as she began crying again.

" so that's why the window broke..." yamcha said, covering bulma.

goku was disgusted...not just at the sight of bora's impaled corpse, but also at the actions of the monster known as tao pai pai...how can a man commit such horrible crimes? and how dare he hurt his friends?!?

"KINTO'UN!!!" the monkey boy shouted in anger as the supersonic cloud stopped in front of the broken window.

"goku, what are you doing?" roshi asked.

" I'm gonna make that tao guy pay!" goku coldly said before looking at Dr. briefs. "...do you have a dragon radar?" he asked the good doctor.

"w...why yes, I do have one! here, take it!" Dr. briefs said as he gave his dragon radar to the monkey boy.

"wait, you have a radar? you hunt dragon balls?" yamcha asked.

"nah, it's because Tetris is a built-in app! i love playing Tetris on it!" Dr. briefs answered.

"goku, are you crazy?" the turtle hermit asked the enraged monkey boy. "tao pai pai is a professional killer! you don't stand a cha-"

"I DON'T CARE!" goku shouted in anger. "HE HURT BULMA!" he said as he jumped on the supersonic cloud. however, before he could leave, krillin stepped forward and called his name.

"goku! I coming with you!" the bald monk said. "together, we might have a chance at beating the guy!"

"no! don't you get it?" roshi said. "tao is one of the strongest fighters on the planet! going against him would be suicide!"

"he's right..." tien said. "...even if you two are pretty strong, you're still children! general tao shows no mercy to anyone!"

"i'll show him no mercy!" goku said in a cold tone that was so unlike him, even krillin was surprised.

" hey, let me join you!" upa suggested. "if he really plans on summoning the great dragon, then that means we can steal the dragon balls from him and wish my father back to life!"

"lord upa, don't risk your life like that!" a tribesman told the little native. "our people needs you more than ever! you're technically the new chief!"

"exactly!" upa said, posing courageously. "as leader of the karinga, it is my duty to risk my life in the name of our tribe! I will bring my father back to life, I swear on the great manitou's name!" he said as his tribesmen were surprised bowed down in approval. ups then signaled for goku and krillin to help him get on kinto'un, which he managed to thanks to having a pure heart.

"i never thought I'd say this..." yamcha said. "...but those kids might be our best bet to beat that tao bastard!"

" guys, send bulma to the hospital, she needs some rest." goku told the gang.

"roger!" roshi said, nodding. "and come back before the tournament starts, alright?"

goku, krillin and upa only nodded as the monkey boy activated the dragon radar, the boys hanging on tight as the supersonic cloud flew away in the distance, hunting for the assassin known as tao pai pai, with goku determined to make him pay for hurting bulma.

back in the hotel room, the ambulance arrived and carried bulma on a stretcher. the gang looked on as the doctors carried her unconscious body to the huge yellow van.

"mr. tien, I can't thank you enough for saving our daughter!" Dr. briefs told the triclop, who nodded in response.

"say, why didn't you join the boys?" yamcha asked. "as far as I can tell, you seem to be tao pai pai's equal!"

"i know..." tien Said, looking at the floor. "...but, at the same time, I feel powerless about doing anything..."

" really? why?" bulma's mother asked.

"master shen and general tao...they have a stronghold on the imperial palace..." tien explained, a somber look appearing on his face. "...they have an eye on every single thing we do...if he learns that I've directly helped you foil general tao's plans...i will be in serious trouble...and chaotzu, too!"

"so he really is manipulating the emperor..." roshi said.

" yes, chaotzu is, unfortunately, nothing more than a puppet for master shen..." tien confirmed. "...i hope you guys succeed, as there is unfortunately nothing I can do to help you. I need to save face in order to get on master shen's good side. who knows, maybe we can free chaotzu and the whole of mifan from his evil clutches..."

"don't worry, we will find a way to expose that snake!" roshi assured the triclop. "we already have evidence to back up our claims!" he said, pointing at two bags in De. briefs's hands containing tao's fingerprints and a shard of the broken window glass with bora's DNA on it.

"hmm, maybe you can do something, after all..." yamcha said, scratching his chin.

" what do you mean?" asked an intrigued tien.

"what I mean is...obviously, you live with shen at the imperial palace, right?" yamcha asked the triclop, who nodded approvingly. "...then how about you sneak up and record evidence that shen is conspiring against the emperor? like secretly record a conversation or something?"

"it'd be hard..." tien said. "...the crane school fighters are telepaths. we mainly speak in our own minds."

" really? even from long distances?" dr. briefs asked, surprised and intrigued thattelepathy actually existed.

"...hey, you're right!" tien suddenly smiled for the first time. "we can't communicate telepathically from long distance! shen communicates via phone for any long distance communication with his subjects! I just need to enter the operation room and secretly record him!"

" yeah, that's what I'm talking about!" yamcha pumped his fist in the air. "we'll catch that bastard in no time!"

"we'll have to be very careful, though..." roshi said. "...shen is an extremely paranoid man, and he will no doubt double check everything to make sure he's not being betrayed."

tien nodded approvingly, before moving at the broken window.

" the Sun will rise soon...i need to hurry back to the forbidden city!" he said as he started to levitate and fly outside, to the surprise of everyone except roshi.

"WAIT, WHAT?? h-h-he can fly?!?" yamcha, Dr. briefs and his wife all shouted in unison.

"that's the specialty of the crane school!" roshi explained. "they are unparalled masters of ki manipulation, to the point of being able to concentrate it on their entire bodies in order to fly like superman!" he said as tien looked at him. "im glad you're on our side, tien shinhan! you realised that your master's way is a way of sin!"

"that's funny, coming from a fellow sinner!" tien said in an ironic tone as he flew away back to the temple, under the awestruck eyes of yamcha and the briefs.

"...well, he's right about that..." yamcha said, scratching his head. "...have you seen his porn collection back at Kame ho-"

"he's not talking about my perverted ways..." roshi corrected the desert bandit, much to the latter and the briefs's intrigue. "...i did something horrible to shen in the past...and it is the reason why we are enemies now..."

"...what exactly happened between you two?" yamcha asked the turtle hermit, who looked at him woth a regretful look on his face.

"i wished it would've gone differently..." roshi said, remembering some painful memories of his past. "...but I had no choice...i did this...in order to save the world..."

 

END OF CHAPTER

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M BACK!! AND BETTER THAN EVER!
> 
> I'm really sorry if this chapter took very long to write. I was feeling like crap for the past month or so, and I didn't feel like i wanna continue writing this fanfic anymore.
> 
> ...that is, until I talked about it to my GF and finally re-read the manga at my library. it was there that I had a really good idea of where I want the next chapters to go, so here I am, back in the game!
> 
> thank you so much to everybody who waited for this chapter to come out! I really appreciate your patience and your feedback!


	31. shaolin showdown! the ruthless tao pai pai!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> goku, upa and krillin goes on the hunt for the notorious tao pai pai, the man responsible for the attack at the hotel. their chase would lead them to krillin's former adoptive home, the legendary shaolin temple, where they'll face the dangerous assassin and maybe learn something sinister about...master roshi?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Following is not for profit. it is strictly a fan work meant for personal amusement. Dragon ball, dragon ball z and dragon ball super is property of Akira toriyama, toyotaro, shueisha, Toei animation and shonen jump. please support the official release.
> 
> Some ideas from this fanfic are taken from Lawrence Simpson, AKA: Masakox of teamfourstar fame. check out his what-ifs, they're pretty interesting!

he was afraid...

not that krillin thinks that he and goku stood no chance against the notorious assassin who almost killed their friend bulma. after all, they trained hard for 2 years under the cat sage korin, and they drank the holy water.

but still, he was afraid.

the man they were looking for is unlike any opponent they ever faced. sure, they've been in life-or-death situations before, what with the whole red ribbon incident and the fight against Dr. gero and the super android 13.

...but the boys, who were joined by the late chief bora's son upa, still felt like this tao pai pai fellow was on a whole other level than any other opponents they ever faced...ruthless, cold-blooded, merciless...the bald monk prayed for Buddha in his head, hoping that he, goku and upa would receive divine protection as they flew all over the eastern mainland onboard the supersonic cloud, kinto'un, in search of the assassin.

he wondered if goku knew what he was doing. he knew that his best friend often acted on impulse, and he, too, would be angry that somebody almost killed bulma...but goku is so eager to avenge his friend that, to krillin, going after a notorious killer like that was simply suicide. he wanted to tell goku that it was too dangerous, that they should go for the safer route of exposing the crime instead of avenging it.

...but he knew the monkey boy would say no...

"woah! that flying cloud is so amazing!" upa, the son of the late chief bora of the karinga tribe, exclaimed as he looked around the vast mass of green down below. he flew on a plane before, so he knew what the world looked like from above. but the feeling of flying on kinto'un, with the wind blowing on his face, was simply sensational. it's as if he really was a mighty eagle soaring in the sky!

"all this flying at high altitude makes me want to..." krillin said before his vertigo kicked in and he vomitted by the side. meanwhile, goku looked as determined as ever. he didn't care if he was risking his life, the bastard who hurt his friends, especially bulma, is gonna pay!

he then looked at the dragon radar, trying to find any dragon ball that was moving. knowing that tao pai pai stole the dragon ball, goku waited until one of the orange dots on the radar's map moved in order to find where the assassin was...as if on cue, no les than 4 orange dots began to move west of the radar!

" THERE!! to the west!" goku exclaimed as kinto'un sharply turned left, almost sending upa and krillin flying as goku picked up the pace. he couldn't wait to teach tao pai pai a lesson!

 

 

silence...

 

dead silence...

the vast, tall hills of the sacred mount song stood up in all of its quiet splendor. only the sound of the howling wind was heard as the leaves of its forest blew off in front of the gates of the legendary shaolin temple, the cradle of martial arts.

 

in the distance, kinto'un appeared from the clouds as goku, krillin and upa noticed the temple from far away.

"woah! look! there's a temple in the mountains!" the little native warrior said, pointing at the building behind the peaks.

"that...that's the shaolin temple!" krillin said, immediately recognising his former adoptive home. "the dragon balls are there?"

"at least, the ones carried by that tao guy..." goku said, looking at his dragon radar. "...if he stopped there, it must mean there is another dragon ball inside the temple!"

"he managed to navigate through all of this dense forest?" upa asked.

" yeah, how in the world did he managed to reach the temple starting from danhua? there's quite a distance between the two!" krillin said. what the boys didn't know, however, was that, as a crane school fighter, tao pai pai could fly.

" the most important thing is that he's here!" goku said, ready for a fight.

"oh man, I hope the monks in the temple are fine..." krillin said, worried about his former brothers in arms, hoping that tao didn't reach them yet...

the cloud flew down and stopped in front of the gates of the shaolin temple. the three boys looked really small in front of the massive gates in front of them. behind the gates stood a marvelous building made of wood, bricks and marble.

"woah, it's huge!" upa said, amazed at the size of the temple.

"it has been built in the 5th century!" krillin explained. "...it was built by the emperor of that time, who commissioned its construction in order to accommodate the forefathers, the people responsible for inventing kung fu."

 

"how come you know all of this?" upa asked the bald monk.

"i was a former shaolin monk myself." krillin answered.

"i thought you didn't like their teachings!" goku said, surprised that his best friend knew so much about the shaolin.

"i hated their philosophy classes, not the history classes!" krillin said before staring at the gates. he then proceeded to recite four phrases in mandarin:

 

"Bùyào chuàngzào wénzì hé zìmǔ”

 

“zhíjiē zhǐxiàng rénlèi de sīxiǎng”

 

"kàn yīgè rén de běnxìng, chéngwéi yīgè fú."

 

"zài jiàoyì zhī wài de tèshū chuánbò"

upon pronouncing the final phrase, krillin opened his eyes, and everybody moved back as the gates slowly opened, revealing the walkway towards the shaolin temple.

 

"t...the gates opened!" upa exclaimed. "w...what did he just say? some kind of password?"

"no, I know what he just said!" goku exclaimed, immediately recognizing the phrases that krillin just recited. "it's the four mottos of Zen! me and my grandpa used to pronounce these mottos when we prayed to buddha together!"

"can you translate into English?" upa asked.

"of course!" goku said. "the 4 phrases are: do not establish words and letters, directly point to the human mind, see one's nature and become Buddha and a special transmission outside the teachings!"

upa was fascinated with those words. this was the first time he ever heard of religious doctrines outside of the native ones he is already familiar with.

"...what do they mean?" upa asked, intrigued.

"...i dunno..." goku shrugged, prompting both upa and krillin to fall on the floor.

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!?" krillin shouted in anger at goku. "You pray for Buddha, yet you don't know the meanings behind the 4 mottos??"

" you know their meanings, krillin?" the monkey boy asked the bald monk.

"...no, me neither..." krillin said, embarrassed, to the confusion of goku.

"...you're an hypocrite!" goku innocently said to his best friend.

" YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE SO BLUNT!!" krillin shouted.

" anyways, let's go avenge my father!" upa said as the three boys walked through the gate and towards te shaolin temple. suddenly, krillin noticed there was something unusual with the temple...he took a closer look, only to find that the temple doors were open!

" oh no..." krillin immediately ran towards the temple, with goku and upa hurriedly following him to the sacred grounds of martial arts.

when they reached the entrance, krillin and goku opened the door...only for somebody to burst out of the door, scaring the boys and putting them in a fighting stance, goku picking up his newly-built nyoibo that the cat sage korin assembled for him.

however, upon seeing the person stumble on the floor, krillin relaxed and told his friends to lower their guards. it was none other than minh, the skinny bully that krillin beat at the 20th tenkaichi budokai! he tried getting up, but he fell down on his knees in pain as he covered his chest with his hand, blood dropping down on it as his clothes were cut open, with a deep cut across his chest. when he saw krillin, his eyes widened in surprise. in fact, he wasn't even sure if it was the same runt that he bullied due to how big his aura had become.

"k...krillin? is that you?" Minh asked through the pain.

"w-what's going on, Minh?" krillin asked. 

"i...its that...that freak...who claims to be from the c...crane school..." Minh answered, flinching in pain as krillin and upa helped him get back up. "...h...he just...shows up at our door and...and starts attacking everybody in the temple, looking for our...dragon ball!"

"no way, he is actually there!" krillin whispered, now even more worried that his former brothers were in deep trouble.

"y...you know him?" Minh asked the small monk.

" we are actually chasing him..." goku explained. "...this man is tao pai pai, a notorious assassin, showing no mercy to anybody who stands in his way...and he's looking for the dragon balls in the name of the crane master, shen. they will stop at nothing to get what they want, and they plan on conquering the land for themselves!"

"...if what you say is true..." Minh said, being carried by krillin And upa. "...the shaolin and the wu tang could be in danger!" Minh said. "the crane school...has made it its mission to destroy all other martial arts schools!" as he said that, the deep pain he was suffering from that cut on his chest brought him down on his knees.

" goku, give him a senzu!" krillin ordered.

"roger!" goku said as he picked up a senzu bean fro. his bag and put It in Minh's mouth. once he took abite, the skinny shaolin monk got back up on his feet like it was nothing, the bleeding on his chest stopping immediately.

"w...woah! what is that?" Minh asked.

"those are senzu beans!" goku explained. "one bite, and you are healed from any injuries, and your stomach is full for 10 days! me and krillin filled our bags full of them from korin's tree!"

"wait, what? YOU trained under korin??" Minh asked, pointing at krillin.

" i'm not the weak little kid you used to bully anymore!" krillin confidently boasted. "...is tao pai pai stills inside?"

"y...yes, he's still inside, making a rampage inside the temple!" Minh said. "our brothers are still in there, fighting against him! we must not let him get near the dragon ball!"

"yosh!" the gang said In unison as they entered the shaolin temple. normally, tourists and visitors would be mesmerized by the sheer beauty of its main hall: finely painted walls made of various, multicolored woods, with ornaments and statues of Buddha and other Buddhist entities decorating the rooms, with objects such as praying desks, pots, jade vases, gongs and small fountains accentuating the mystical aspects of the temple, with various Buddhist scriptures stuck on the tapestries.

unfortunately, what the gang saw was anything but beautiful. longing the corridors were trails of lifeless bodies belonging to monks who defended their sacred ground from the invader, many of them having their limbs and heads cut off or their chest cut open like a knife through butter, with some of them even being cut in half, intestines laying on the floor as they hung from their torso. blood covered the walls left and right, tainting the statues of the great buddha with the essence of its worshippers.

the gang were terrorised by this incredibly grim sight. it's as if they stepped into Hades itself!

"this is horrible!" said a disgusted and angry krillin, who felt rage build inside him as the place he once called home now stood bloodied and stained before him.

"yeah...we tried everything we could...we even forced into him the 36 chambers of death...yet nothing could stop him!" Minh said. "this guy is like a flying tank!"

meanwhile, goku looked at his dragon radar. the 4 dots were now only a couple of steps away to the left, with a 5th dot moving near them.

" he's close...and he's near the dragon ball!" goku said, putting his hand on his nyoibo in anticipation for the coming battle. upa took out his tomahawk, putting the blood of the dead bodies on his face like a true native warrior.

"be careful, guys, he's got a sword!" Minh warned the kids. "and he knows how to fight with it, as you can see..." he said as he looked at the sliced open bodies on the floor and his own cut on his chest.

taking the warning by heart, the gang cautiously turned the corner. suddenly, they heard kiais and screams of pain, as if there was fighting going on at the shrine.

upon turning around, they witnessed a whole gang of shaolin monks doing battle with the assassin known as tao pai pai, who was brandishing a Chinese Jian sword, avoiding the shaolin's high flying attacks with grace and elegance before swiftly and brutally slicing them open with his sword, the ferocity of his attacks only matched by the graceful movements that contradicted the swift and gory deaths he inflicted on his opponents.

 

after disposing of all of his opponents, tao cleaned his sword with his bare hands and brought it back to its sheet. he then turned around and faced the six-star dragon ball, which was placed underneath a statue of Buddha. happy at the work he's done, he extended his arm so as to grab the shiny orange crystal ball...

"STOP RIGHT THERE!!"

upon hearing the childish voice that shouted behind him, tao didn't even turned around. he simply closed his eyes and smiled, as he instantly knew that it was that monkey boy from the turtle school.

"...i knew you would turn up..." he said without any trace of emotion in his voice as he turned around to face the monkey boy. "...and you brought your little friends with you..."

" and not just anybody..." krillin said, looking as if he wanted tao's head on a stick for what he did to his former brothers of the shaolin "...i am krillin, former student of wu-san tei, 152nd grand master of the shaolin temple!"

"and I'm upa, son of bora, chief of the karinga tribe, the brave warrior that you killed!" the little native warrior said as he brandished his tomahawk in the air. 

" and you hurt my friend, bulma!" goku said, taking a fighting stance with nyoibo in hand. " we will make you pay for your sins!"

 

tao pai pai simply bowed his head down and smiled. as If he was not taking the boys seriously at all.

"...nice staff ya got there!" tao said, complimenting nyoibo, surprising everybody. "and it looks like it is fresh from korin's workshop!"

"and this staff is gonna kick your ass! now draw your sword and fight, if you have even remotely any sense of honour, that is!" goku challenged the assassin, pointing nyoibo at him.

"unbelievable...it really is nyoibo!" Minh said in his head, seeing the legendary divine staff in person for the first time.

tao pai pai, meanwhile, was giggling at goku's challenge, as if he thought it was a joke. he then took a chair near the Buddha statue and a table containing a chessboard, sitting down on the chair and crossing his legs while laughing, much to the confusion of everyone.

"I came here tonight to play chess...nobody mentioned anything about a fight!"

of course, the boys knew that he was lying. they stood on high alert as tao pai pai began playing chess against an invisible opponent.

"...why do they always resist..." tao said, staring at the dragon ball in front of the chessboard. "...why can't they understand that, by simply letting us get the dragon balls, we are simply saving the world from the coming evil?"

" you mean the demon king?" krillin asked, catching two pai pai's attention.

"...how do you know that?" the assassin said, looking menacingly.

"d...demon king?" Minh said in his head.

" the history books of the temple tells the tales of brave shaolin monks, led by grand master mutaito and my master, muten roshi, battling against the demon king to save the world and eventually seal him away with a forbidden secret technique!" krillin recited.

"really? I tho-" goku was about to say that tien shinhan informed them of the demon king, but krillin immediately shut him up with a death glare. meanwhile, tao pai pai resumed playing chess.

"indeed, you seem to know your history, boy..." tao said, moving his chess pieces. "...but, unfortunately, you don't know the whole truth about muten roshi..."

" what, the fact that he's a huge pervert? we already know that!" krillin said. "muten roshi may be a perverted coot,but he's unparalleled in the martial arts, and has a righteous, just soul residing in his heart!"

tao simply giggled in response, as if he was mocking the bald monk's confidence. "...poor child..." he said, "...you don't know anything about your master..."

"don't listen to him, krillin! he's telling only lies!" goku exclaimed, to which krillin nodded.

"call them lies all you want..." tao said. "...you may not accept what I'm about tell you about muten roshi as the truth right now..." while he said that, a monk came out of the shadows and attacked tao from behind! the monk tried stabbing the assassin using a Guan dao, but tao immediately bowed down face first on the chessboard to avoid it. the monk then swung vertically at tao, but the latter rolls around with his chair, the blade of the guandao becoming stuck into the wood. tao then kicked the chair, pushing away the monk along with his guandao.

tao then got up and brandished his jian sword. as he approached to strike, the monk swung his guan dao, only for tao to effortlessly dodge all of his attacks and, with only one graceful swing, he disarmed the monk, cutting the guandao in half.

"he's incredible!" goku exclaimed, amazed at the martial symphony conducted by tao.

 

"no way! how is he able to be so agile with such a big sword?" upa asked.

 

tao then turned his back at the disarmed and stunned monk and, unexpectedly, brought his jian sword back in its sheet. everybody were confused at this action, especially the monk. tao then turned around and stared at the monk, closing and opening his hand, as if he is asking him to come get some, which the monk obliged, lunging backwards into the traditional shaolin kenpo pose, launching himself like a rocket, extending his arm like a spear with his fist closed as he delivered the senshippo technique.

"STOP! IT'S A TRAP!!" Minh shouted at the monk.

alas, it was too late...as soon as the flying monk approached tao pai pai, the latter moved his arm over the attacking arm of the monk, his closest hand grabbing the wrist and his far-reaching hand grabbing his shoulder tightly. with a mighty kiai, tao pai pai pulled on the monk's arm, destabilising him and grabbing it so tightly that his collar bone started breaking, causing him immense pain.

taking advantage of that, tao then pulled the monk's head backwards with one hand, and formed a claw with his free hand.

 

"T...TIGER STYLE!" a surprised krillin and goku shouted in unison.

and tao pai pai wasted no time and plunged the tiger claw right into the monk's neck, piercing through his lungs, blood starting to pour down tao's hand. as the monk was losing whatever left of his life in his cold, murderous hands. tao looked at the boys, who were speechless in front of such cruelty.

"...you may not accept what I'm about to tell you about muten roshi as true right now..." tao told the gang, continuing his earlier phrase like it was nothing. "...but you will learn, soon enough, that learning the truth too late can kill you!" he said as he ripped off the bones inside the monk's neck in one swift movement, blood spreading all over his face as he showed the ripped off vertebrae bones in his hands, before forcing it into the dying monk's mouth...before casually pushing him gently, his dead body falling on the floor like a domino.

 

the gang were simply stunned...while goku and krillin have faced some rough opponents before, they've never seen such brutality and savagery done by one man! upa was even more terrified. while he witnessed some conflict, what with his village defending themselves from the red ribbon, he never participated in any battles. he realised that, for his first battle, he probably picked the worst one available!

 

that's where the boys realised...that their lives were on the line!

meanwhile, tao wiped the blood off his face with a handkerchief, threw it away, picked up the fallen chair and sat on it in front of the chessboard, resuming his game like nothing happened. the boys were too intimidated to do anything...

"...muten roshi...and my brother, the crane master...were best friends, once...but you already knew that..." tao started his speech. "...they studied under the same master, mutaito, descendent of Ng mui, one of the five elders of shaolin, inside those same halls... they laughed together, trained together, went through life's curve balls together and they fought battles and even shed blood together in the war against the nihon...nobody would have guessed...that, one day, that bastard would betray my brother, his inseparable best friend..."

when tao said that last sentence, the gang were intrigued. obviously, they hoped that tao was lying, that he was taking advantage of being traumatised in order to break their spirits even more...but that's the problem, they hoped he lied! the way tao was speaking, it's as if he was being completely honest.

besides, they were dying to know what happened between roshi and shen.

 

"...i can see on your faces that you're dying to know what he did to my poor old brother..." tao said, smiling sinisterly. "...how about I tell you everything..." he said, putting another chair at the other side of the table. "...while playing some chess?"

everybody stood still, sweat falling down their temples at tao's ominous menace. nobody among them were particularly good at chess, nor did they cared...they simply don't want to touch tao pai pai, even with a ten foot pole!

suddenly, goku, who was growing impatient, decided to climb up the stairs heading towards tao's table.

"wait, goku, what are you doing?? it's a trap!" krillin said, before realising that tao wasn't even moving, simply letting goku get close to him.

"HEY!" an impatient goku exclaimed at the assassin. "if ya wanna fight, then fight with me! 1 on 1! man to man!"

" WHAT???" the rest of the gang shouted in unison. they just saw tao pai pai kill a man in front of their eyes, and goku wants to fight him? is this courage...or just foolishness?

surprised at the sheer guts (or is it insolence?) of the nyoibo-wielding monkey boy in front of him, tao closed his eyes and smiled.

"...whatever you say..." tao said, finally getting up from his chair, putting the six-star dragon ball into his bag before depositing it on the table. "...you have the skills worthy to fight me, child...as you've demonstrated at the budokai..."

"i'll make you pay for hurting bulma, you monster..." goku said, taking a fighting stance with his nyoibo. "...and I'll show you that playing chess doesn't make you good in a fight!" he said as he proceeded to destroy the chess board with one strike of nyoibo, looking at tao with an intense stare that meant that, this time, he is not messing around!

krillin, upa and Minh were astounded at the sheer audacity that goku was showing. this monkey boy is unlike anything they've ever seen...he stares at the face of death with gusto and assurance! "...he's not human!" Minh whispered.

tao, meanwhile, did a small giggle in response to goku's comments about the game of chess. he was not impressed at all with this foolish monkey boy destroying the chess board.

"...the game of chess..." tao then put his hand on the helm of his sheated sword, goku preparing himself for any incoming strike, his friends sweating hard at the sheer tension in the air.

"...is like a sword fight..."

 

and, in a flash, tao pai pai unsheated his sword, delivered a thousand swings to destabilise goku before striking him vertically...

...in an incredible display of concentration and awareness, goku managed to block the sword with his nyoibo, surprising his friends, who didn't see it coming!

"...you must think first, and quickly, before you act!" the assassin said as he swung his sword at goku's neck, which the latter dodged by leaning backwards, delivering a somersault kick which tao also dodged by leaning back. goku tried bludgeoning tao with the point of his staff, but the assassin side-stepped and began slashing in all sorts of direction with ballet-like movements as goku blocked all of his swings, finally hitting him on the stomach before extending his pole, sending tao to the wall.

tao saw the wall and proceeded to jump so that his feet hit the wall first, then pushed himself using his legs , flying towards the monkey boy, pointing his sword towards his face. goku was ready to dodge...

...only to be caught off-guard by a blindingly fast thousand cuts! however, he saw the final blow coming, and he barely dodged it! tao finds himself at the other side of the room, while goku is now on the defensive, armed with his new and trusty nyoibo...and sporting a new, shorter haircut courtesy of the thousand cuts!

"hmph, roshi and korin taught you well..." tao said to the monkey boy. "...and you got lucky with that last-minute dodge!"

"heh, that's cause your wu-tang sword style is slow!" goku taunted, even though he had the haircut to show that he was indeed lucky to avoid the blow.

"w...wu tang sword style? what does he mean?" upa asked krillin and Minh.

"wow, goku's right, I didn't even realised that tao uses wu tang sword techniques!" Minh exclaimed.

"but what are you talking about?" upa asked.

"wu tang sword style is the main fighting style practiced by wu tang monks that uses bladed weapons..." krillin explained. "...it uses delicate techniques along with lightning fast movements. Wu tang sword goes from slow to fast and soft to hard in an instant. Attacks can be straight-line or circular. Low postures are utilized along with high jumps in the air."

"interesting..." tao was surprised that goku recognised his fighting style. "...you seem to know a lot of martial arts, boy...how can you recognise my wu tang style?"

"i had lots of books on martial arts when I lived on mt. paozu!" goku explained. "now I wonder...why do you use a wu tang style if you're supposed to be from the crane school?"

"the same reason you and your bald friend trained under korin despite being students of the turtle school: to become stronger!" tao said before switching to the wu tang sword stance. "en garde! i'll let you try my wu tang style!"

"heh..." goku then put his staff in front of him, standing still...

"NYOIBO, THREE DRAGON HEADS!!"

everybody, including tao pai pai, widened their eyes In reaction to the little surprise that goku just revealed: not only did korin forged a new nyoibo, he also upgraded it, equipping it with the ability to turn into a three-sectioned staff! he does a small kata in order to demonstrate the extended range and greater flexibility of the three dragon Heads, then takes a fighting stance.

"...alright, bring the ruckus!" goku exclaimed as he lunged towards tao pai pai. the extended range and flexibility of the three dragon Heads mode made it hard for tao to get a good shot in, as he would often find his jian sword trapped in the chains linking the three sections of goku's nyoibo, the monkey boy showing complete mastery of staff techniques as he proved himself more than a match for the assassin's swordfighting skills.

 

after parrying two lateral strikes, goku caught a vertical strike from tao's sword with the bottom section of his staff. he then turned it around clockwise...he disarmed tao, much to the assassin's and his friend's surprise, then grabs his throat with the chains of his staff!

" HE GOT HIM!!" krillin exclaimed joyfully.

"h...how is this...possible?!" tao said as he grabbed the chains that was choking him, struggling with all of his might.

"KRILLIN! BLAST HIM!!" goku ordered krillin, who quickly cupped his hands together...

"ka...me..."

 

Minh couldn't believe it! the runt that he and lao used to bully is now doing the kamehameha! meanwhile, tao's spit started spilling out of his mouth as his eyes turned blood red, goku desperately holding him in place with his three dragon heads.

"ha...me..."

goku pulled with all of his might, holding tao pai pai in place.

"...HAAAAA!!!!"

the big blue blast of ki came out of krillin's palms and headed straight at the trapped assassin, their victory seemed assured...

 

...however, out of nowhere, tao pai pai flew towards the roof, carrying goku with him! and the monkey boy was hit dead on in the back by krillin's kamehameha!!

"WHAT??" Everybody shouted as goku was blasted away, crashing hard into the wall as his gi was completely ravaged by krillin's kamehameha, his back suffering 2nd degree burns all over it.

"G...GOKU!" krillin shouted, shedding tears as he involuntarily hurt his best friend. he then looked at tao pai pai, who was floating in the air.

"No way...he can fly?!?" upa and Minh were equally stunned at this sudden developpement!

"phew...that was too close!" tao sighed as he retook his breath. he then landed back on the ground as he looked at goku, who was in pain due to his burns on his back. "...such a powerful kamehameha...already at such a young age..." tao remarked, realising that the kids he is facing aren't ordinary kids.

suddenly, upa appeared behind him, screaming a native war cry as he was about to strike with his tomahawk! he swung with ferocity and rage, but tao, showing the serenity befitting of a crane, avoided any and all of his strikes, culminating in him tripping the little native, then soccer kicking the FUCK outta him, sending him crashing into the Buddha statue, breaking it in pieces.

 

...but suddenly, tao felt instant pain on his back...it was Minh, who threw throwing knives at the assassin's back! krillin then jumped and delivered a flying kick right at the back of tao's neck, sending him tumbling near the broken buddha statue. he then got up, arching his back in pain due to the throwing knives planted ion it.

"what's wrong?" krillin taunted tao pai pai as he took a fighting stance. " you can't call yourself an assassin with such sloppy awareness!"

enraged by the bald monk's insolent taunts, tao pai pai put himself in the horse position and concentrated his ki...suddenly, an impressive aura appeared over his crane, krillin getting ready for whatever the assassin was plotting...that's where, to his surprise, tao's body started beefing up considerably, his muscles developing gross-looking bulges as blood poured down from his knife wounds on his back…

“WOOOOAAHHHHRRGGH!!!”

With a mighty kiai, the muscles blasted out the knives on tao's back, his wounds closing rapidly as his body deflated back to its original state.

“W…what the hell?” krillin and Minh exclaimed in surprise at what they just witnessed. “how did he got rid of the knives?”

“this is the specialty of the crane school: expertise in ki manipulation!” tao boasted. “…no other martial arts school is better at using ki than us! And, to answer your question, boy, I concentrated all of my ki into my upper body, making my muscles grow so big that my body pushed away the knives on my back! I gotta admit, you friend here got me while my guard was down…” he said as he looked at Minh. “…but if you think that you’ve seen the best of me, you're sorely mistaken!” tao said as he picked up his jian sword and took his wu tang sword stance.

“you’ve shown us enough of your wu tang style!” krillin told the assassin. “allow me to demonstrate the skills of shaolin!” he said as he formed the ying and the yang with his fists.

“Secret technique: shadow boxing!!”

Krillin and tao pai pai soon charged at the same time, tao striking with his sword with ferocity…but krillin's shadow boxing skills allowed him to avoid any incoming sword swings, countering with strong blows and graceful agility. Meanwhile, Minh couldn’t do anything but watch this incredible battle unfold. He couldn’t believe that krillin, the good-for-nothing midget, has now become a martial arts prodigy under muten roshi!

“shaolin shadow boxing…and the wu tang sword style…” Minh whispered as the rivalry between the two empires of martial arts played itself in front of his awestruck eyes.

Meanwhile, goku slowly and painfully got up to his knees, his back burning like a crimson fire due to the burns he got from receiving krillin's kamehameha. Just like every body else, he was caught off guard with the reveal that tao pai pai could fly, which motivated the monkey boy even more. He wanted to kick tao’s ass, even with the 2nd degree burns on his back!

Still suffering from said burns, goku reached to his bag and took out a senzu. After eating it, the massive pain he felt on his back was gone, and his skin grew back to envelop his back muscles.

Rejuvenated by the senzu, goku picked up his nyoibo and checked his surroundings, his eyes fell on krillin fighting the sword-wielding tao pai pai with only his bare hands. Goku recognised the secret technique of shadow boxing, something which krillin was applying to perfection, moving his arms like the ying and the yang to strike tao in his lower and upper regions, even doing the split to avoid a sword strike and punching the assassin in the nuts for good measure! meanwhile, he saw Minh stationed behind a pillar in hiding.

Goku was ready to jump in and help his best friend when he heard a high-pitched moan. He immediately recognised the voice as belonging to upa, and he rushed towards the rubbles of the Buddha statue that the little native warrior crashed into in order to get him out of here, which he did soon after.

“upa! Are you alright? What happened to you?” goku asked him, seeing that he had bumps on his forehead and he was grabbing his stomach in pain.

“t…that assassin got me good…he kicked me so hard I crashed into the statue, as you can see…” he said as he went down on one knee from the pain in his stomach. “I'm too hurt to continue…I’m sorry, guys…”

“hold on, eat this!” goku ordered the native warrior as he gave him a senzu bean. After taking a bite, he stood back up ready to fight…unfortunately, the bump on upa's forehead was still there!

“wow, those senzu beans are really helpful!” upa said. “the cat spirit really gave this to you?”

“korin's not a spirit, he’s very real, I can tell ya that!” goku answered. Upa then noticed that goku's back was fully healed.

“hey, your back Is healed!”

“I ate a senzu myself!” goku explained as he looked at krillin and tao fighting. “…I think krillin needs our help.”

“yosh! Let’s go!!” upa exclaimed as he and goku immediately pounced on tao pai pai from the back, as the battle turned into a martial ballet of epic proportions, tao proving more than a match for three opponents at once. At one point, tao parried a double strike from goku and upa and flew in the air to avoid a behind-the-back dropkick from krillin, who hit goku and upa instead. Tao then plunged with his sword aimed at the three boys, but goku extended his nyoibo so as to cover his two friends and block tao's sword. After getting up, goku used the three dragon Heads mode again as the three attacked tao from all sides, the assassin now starting to sweat and get tired from all the fighting…

“NOW!!” goku ordered his two friends as they attacked at the same time. First, goku used his three dragon Heads mode to trap tao’ s legs and force him on his knees, then upa threw his tomahawk right at tao's back, the assassin screaming in pain as he instinctly leaned backwards. Finally, krillin delivered the finishing blow: a thunderous roundhouse kick right at tao's face, sending him crashing into the gong as it made a resounding “BOOOOOAAAASSSHHH!!!" that resonated across the temple.

The gang and Minh reunited in front of the Buddha statue, congratulating themselves, thinking that they finally beaten the assassin known as tao pai pai…

…unfortunately, tao pai pai is a man that is really hard to kill, as he got up, got rid of the tomahawk planted on his back using his ki-fueled self-healing ability. As he regained his breath, he felt blood flowing down his mouth. He cleaned his mouth with his hand and took a good look at it.

“you…made me…bleed…”

How could this be? Somehow, tao pai pai was losing against a bunch of children! It was inconceivable, tao pai pai is the greatest assassin there is!

“what’s wrong, can’t keep up with us?” krillin taunted the assassin. “now hand over the dragon balls and tell us what happened between master roshi and your brother!”

Suddenly, an enraged tao flew at the speed of sound, forming crane beaks with his hands as he pressed on each of the gang's necks, paralyzing them in a flash! He then grabbed the dragon ball on the desk where he was playing chess and put it in his bag containing the other dragon balls.

“argh, I can’t move!” said a paralysed goku.

“w-we didn’t even see him coming!” krillin said.

“heh heh heh, watch your steps, kids, you best protect ya necks!” tao taunted as he went towards a pillar. He put his arms around it and concentrated all of his ki…

“TOOOOOAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!”

With a roaring kiai, tao ripped the pillar from the ground and carried it on his back towards a balcony. Upon reaching it, he put the pillar back in his arms and targeted the sky.

“TEIYAAAAAHHH!!!”

Using all of his strength, tao pai pai threw the pillar far away into the sky like a javelin.

He then turned around to see goku, krillin, upa and Minh on the ground, trying to get back up from their temporary paralysis.

“if you wish to learn the truth about your master…you have to catch me first!” said tao as he flew away, landing right on the pillar, surfing it into the sky as he flew away in a twinkle.

The boys ran towards the balcony, but it was too late…tao already slipped through their grasp.

“dammit!” swore krillin. “goku, the dragon radar!” he exclaimed.

“yosh!” goku said as he looked at the radar, noticing a bunch of orange dots flying away.

“KINTO'UN!!” the monkey boy shouted as the supersonic cloud appeared in front of them.

“Minh, summon all the martial arts schools!” krillin ordered his former bully. “we'll need all the help we can get!”

“Roger! I’ll do it as gratitude for you guys saving the shaolin temple!” Minh said as he headed towards the bells tower.

Goku, krillin and upa immediately jumped onboard KINTO’UN and flew towards tao pai pai's direction at full speed, using the dragon radar as a tracker. After a minute of searching for him, they found a pillar flying far away in the distance.

“THERE HE IS!”goku exclaimed. The cloud later managed to approach the pillar.

“HEY YOU!!”

“…hold on, what??” tao pai pai was surprised. It was those pesky brats! And even more surprising, they were riding on the legendary supersonic cloud, kinto'un!

“you're not gonna get away like this! You didn’t even told us what happened between roshi and shen!” goku said to the assassin.

Wanting none of goku's shit, tao pai pai immediately swung his sword at the monkey boy, who parried it with his nyoibo. And thus began a tense and exciting aerial duel, both sides looking to make them fall from their respective flying contraptions before quickly evolving into an aerial dogfight, goku and krillin trying to blast tao pai pai with kamehamehas while the assassin flew in the air using his own ki, throwing shurikens, throwing knives, flying guillotines and even firing ki attacks at the boys as they performed aerial manoeuvres like two jet fighters battling it out in the sky.

Finally, the critical moment came when both the gang and tao pai pai faced each other, goku and krillin charging kamehamehas.

“grr, I’ve had enough of you! Begone!” he said, pointing his index finger in the air as a shiny light appeared at the tip.

“DODONP-"

However, just as tao, goku and krillin were about to fire their respective blasts, a missile came out of nowhere and struck all four people in the sky, completely obliterating the supersonic cloud and blasting tao pai pai away as goku, krillin and upa fell down towards the earth below, landing hard in trees and bushes. Goku tried getting up, but the surprise missile attack completely knocked him out cold...the last thing he saw before closing his eyes were two silhouettes, one of a chubby man with large shoulders hidden in a lab coat, the other the shape of a little girl who seemed to have long hair, a baseball cap and was wearing overalls.

However, before he could do anything, goku fell unconscious…

END OF CHAPTER

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wow, you can't believe how much fun I had writing this chapter!
> 
> this is the most fun I had with this story since the early chapters! coming up with the fight choreography and shit, it was awesome! and those of you who are kung fu movie buffs and fans of a certain hip-hop group probably had a field day recognising all the references I've hidden.
> 
> also, if any of you speak Mandarin and think the Chinese phrases that krillin said was a bunch of incomprehensible bullshit, I used Google translate, so yeah...
> 
> thank you very much for reading and for 3000 hits! I really appreciate it!


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